North Goa has notified 14 designated watersports zones across rivers, lakes, beaches and other inland water bodies, making professional supervision and specified safety conditions mandatory for operators. The tourism department said the demarcation is intended to regulate and monitor recreational water-based activities across the district.
The notified locations include Baga, Baga creek, Keri on the Tiracol river, Mayem lake, a site near the Moira river, four locations along the Chapora river, Orda on the Nerul river and two locations along the Mhadei river near the Ustem dam. The Chapora locations include an area near Chapora jetty.
Activities permitted across the sites include kayaking, stand-up paddle boarding, paddle boating, boat rides and river rafting. The notification specifies that operational limits and permitted activities will vary by location, with operators required to follow the conditions prescribed for each designated zone.
Kayaking operations will be restricted to distances between 200 metres and 500 metres from the boarding point, according to the notification. The activity must be conducted under the supervision of trained professionals. River rafting near the Ustem dam also carries an explicit instructor-supervision requirement.
Tourism director Kedar Naik said in the notification that river rafting would be permitted for a distance of not more than 1 kilometre from the boarding point and only under the direct supervision, guidance and assistance of trained professional instructors.
The notification follows developments in July, when the captain of ports department rescinded permissions for river tourism and watersports. The department had also informed the Bombay high court that the tourism department had not notified or demarcated designated monsoon watersports zones, despite an earlier framework requiring operators to obtain a no-objection certificate before starting operations.
The new demarcation creates fixed areas for recreational watersports and links permission to activity-specific operating conditions. For visitors, the rules establish where listed activities can take place; for operators, they set geographic limits and supervision requirements that must be followed at the notified sites.
The notification covers both established tourist locations and inland water bodies, including river stretches and a lake. Its implementation will require activities at the designated sites to remain within the prescribed distances, permitted zones and professional-supervision conditions set by the tourism department.
