Sunburn gets nod, nets in Rs 1 crore for govt - Herald

Sunburn gets nod, nets in Rs 1 crore for govt December 27, 2012 TEAM HERALD teamherald@herald-goa.com PANJIM: While the State government belts out licences for mega musical extravaganzas, it is also singing its way to the treasury, by raking in estimated Rs 3.5 crore on two such events ~ Windsong and Sunburn. font-size: medium; text-align: justify;">After much speculation and official utterances that permission to such events would be denied due to the problems they create, Sunburn got the final clearance from the government Wednesday with the imposition of Rs 1 crore fee and a security deposit of Rs 1.5 crore in addition. Windsong, which was held earlier this week, had to cough up a hefty fee of Rs 50 lakh and an additional security deposit of Rs 30 lakh. The third event, Oranjuice scheduled later this month, is still awaiting government clearances even though permissions committee has approved the event. This is the first time that such hefty fees have been levied on mega events held in Goa. Sunburn, top officials say, was given government approval Wednesday with nearly 100 conditions. It was decided to finally allow the event in Candolim and not shifted to South Goa as earlier announced by the tourism minister. However, preparations at the Candolim venue were on much before approvals were given and venue was even printed on tickets sold much in advance, irrespective of permissions. Official versions were that venues short listed for Sunburn in South Goa were found lacking in proper facilities for parking and crowd management. “While the government wants to have such mega events it has also found it fit to levy fees so that the State benefits from the same,” a committee member stated. The permissions committee, he said, has been set up basically to ensure that Goa gets quality events to the State. Sunburn is expected to sell around 16,000 tickets and bring in a crowd of around 40,000 people for the three-day event. Officials say that in addition to the fees, the organisers have to also pay the requisite fees for excise, sound and other permissions. “In future it is proposed that all this would also come under a single window system for payment of various fees,” said this committee member. The government has not yet fixed the fees for the third event Oranjuice scheduled at the end of the month. http://oheraldo.in/News/Main%20Page%20News/Sunburn-gets-nod-nets-in-Rs-1-crore-for-govt/68589.html Sunburn: Goa lost Rs 9 cr entertainment tax last year? December 27, 2012 http://oheraldo.in/News/Local%20News/Sunburn-Goa-lost-Rs-9-cr-entertainment-tax-last-year/68604.html