Goa Tourism files case against X user for ‘false data’ on foreign tourist arrivals

PANAJI: The Goa Tourism Department has lodged a police complaint against an X user, Ramanuj Mukherjee, accusing him of disseminating “false data through his social media handles, thereby causing significant annoyance to local businesses and inducing fear or alarm within the local community.” The Goa Tourism Department said the X user had shared wildly inaccurate data to make the case that foreign tourist visits to the state had dropped significantly. The complaint, lodged by deputy director of tourism Rajesh Kale, alleges that Mukherjee shared wildly inaccurate data to make the case that foreign tourist visits to Goa had dropped significantly. Indian tourists still visiting, but soon likely to ditch it as word spreads about exploitation of tourists while there are so many cheaper comparable locations abroad,” According to the data Mukherjee shared, foreign tourist arrivals to Goa fell from 8.5 million in 2019 to 1.5 million in 2023. “While global travel faced unprecedented disruptions due to the COVID-19 pandemic, impacting foreign tourist numbers worldwide, Goa’s international tourism is on a steady path to recovery.