Team visiting Russia to study reasons for drop in Russian footfalls in Goa

Panaji: Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Friday said that the high-level delegation visiting Russia will hold a discussion with the representatives of the Russian government to ascertain the reasons as to why there is a decline in the Russian tourist footfalls in Goa in the last few years.

“Earlier, we used to see Russian tourists visiting Goa in large numbers. However, we have seen a declining trend in the recent past.  We have to review and study the difficulties faced by them and definitely, our delegation visiting Russia will discuss it with their representatives,” said Sawant while interacting with pressmen in the state Assembly complex.

The Chief Minister will be a part of the high-level delegation of the central government, led by Union Minister for Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal, which will visit the Russian city Vladivostok.

The delegation will include four other chief ministers of the Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled states, besides Sawant. They are Yogi Adityanath (Uttar Pradesh), Vijay Rupani (Gujarat), Devendra Fadnavis (Maharashtra) and Manohar Lal Khattar (Haryana).

“During our visit, we will study different industries like mining, tourism, agriculture and see whether through the trade exchange programme we can invest in Russia or whether they can invest here. It is a proud moment for me that I am nominated by the Prime Minister to be a part of the high-level delegation of the central government,” said Sawant.

The Chief Minister informed that along with him, around five prominent industrialists from Goa will be a part of the eight-member delegation from Goa.  

During the visit, the five BJP-ruled states are expected to sign respective MoUs in various areas including petroleum and natural gas, tourism, infrastructure, renewable energy, agriculture including contract farming and food processing.