Lifeguards to work midnight shift to deal with drunk revelry

Panaji: With hordes of international and domestic tourists expected to arrive in Goa for the upcoming festive week, the state-appointed lifesaver agency, Drishti Marine, has intensified its presence along the coast. One of the main concerns for the lifeguards is the huge number of intoxicated revellers who flock to the beaches to ring in the new year.

Drishti will deploy lifeguards on midnight shifts during the peak tourism season to keep vigil over large midnight crowds on Christmas and New Year's Eve, and it will also hire volunteers on beaches to assist lifeguards.

“Drishti Marine has taken pre-emptive safety measures this holiday season to safeguard beach goers, which include increasing the number of lifesavers by 24 personnel and deploying artificial intelligence bots, Aurus and Triton, on the beaches. These steps have been taken in anticipation of the increased footfall along popular stretches of Goa’s coastline, namely Baga, Miramar, Calangute, and Candolim beaches in North Goa and Colva, Benaulim, and Palolem beaches in South Goa,” said Navin Awasthi, chief executive officer of Drishti Marine.

During the last festive season between December 2022 and January 2023, lifeguards were involved in 171 rescue operations.

More than 450 lifesavers are being posted at their designated sites, while 80 beach safety patrol personnel will monitor the beach stretches to oversee operations and ensure unhindered service.

Lifesaver Ashwin Ghag at Calangute Beach said that extra manpower is necessary for efficient crowd management.

“The two significant issues we prepare ourselves for during Christmas and New Year are crowd management and attending to individuals who are intoxicated. For this reason, deploying more lifesavers helps to mitigate any unforeseen circumstances,” says Ghag.

Drishti Marine has also brought in additional vehicles to patrol beaches and quickly respond to rescue efforts.

Additional jet skis have also been deployed at beaches that witness higher tourist footfalls. “Lifesavers manning these jet skis also coordinate with each other from various locations during search and rescue operations. Towers and Jeeps on the beach have a high-powered two-way radio set installed to enable strong communications capability,” said Awasthi.