Goa: Tourism, Migrations, and Ecosystem Transformations

Author(s): Ligia Noronha, Alito Siqueira, S. Sreekesh, Lubina Qureshy, and Saltanat Kazi
Source: AMBIO: A Journal of the Human Environment, 31(4):295-302. 2002.
Published By: Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1579/0044-7447-31.4.295
URL: http://www.bioone.org/doi/full/10.1579/0044-7447-31.4.295

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Ligia Noronha, Alito Siqueira,
S. Sreekesh, Lubina Qureshy
and Saltanat Kazi

Goa: Tourism,
Migrations,
and Ecosystem
Transformations

and income, and in-migration of Indians from other states).

This article is based on a larger case study that invest- Moreover, tourism effects are assessed in terms of the accom-
igated the role of tourist induced and other population panying population movements. The assessment examines eco-
movements in causing coastal ecosystem change in Goa, logical and ecosystem changes and their links to the historic re-
India. It focuses especially upon agro-ecosystems locally organization of social, economic, and legal institutions and prac-
known as khazan lands, and sand dunes, and how they tices. Hence, rather than using a billiard-board model (a term
are transformed to accommodate the needs of tourists and coined by Wood 1991) (4), in which tourism as an exogenous
tourism. The effects of different forms of tourism upon land
variable generates a series of effects, this study examines inter-
cover and land-use change is assessed. The research
findings suggest that it is not population movements alone nal, social, economic, and political conditions that make possi-
that cause ecosystem changes, but the changes in ble the ecosystem changes brought on by tourism. To understand
relations between people and ecosystems. This means the effects of tourism upon ecosystems, it is useful to describe
that in some cases land cover has not changed as much tourism in 2 ways: i) with reference to the time period in which
as land use, and in other cases land cover has changed a destination has had tourist activity; and ii) the type of partici-
dramatically. Intermediary influences upon land use and pating tourist, which gives a destination its distinctive character
land-cover change are also legal, political, and economic as a low-, middle-, or high budget destination (5).
factors, particularly changes in property rights.
STUDY AREA AND METHODS
The paper focuses on three coastal villages within Goa —
INTRODUCTION Calangute, Anjuna, and Cavelossim. Each location represents the
Studies of the effects of tourism on developing countries have a three types of tourism evident in Goa. Calangute caters to tour-
modest history ever since de Kadt’s book was published (1). This ists of all income levels, and is the busiest and most commer-
literature shares some common characteristics—most studies fo- cialized tourist destination in Goa. A variety of accommodations
cus on small islands where the small size of the host society and are found here, ranging from cheap guesthouses to hotels cater-
of tourism developments and their consequences can be better ing to upscale tourists. Population density is high (1017 persons
measured and understood (2). Tourism is treated as an external km–2, as per the 1991 census figures) compared to other parts
variable which leads to a series of social, economic, cultural, and of Goa (6). Anjuna attracts low budget tourists and has been a
environmental changes. Further, in keeping with disciplinary popular destination since the 1970s, especially for backpackers
boundaries, the socioeconomic effects are examined separately (7). Cavelossim attracts the more upscale tourist. It is secluded
from the cultural ones. These in turn more often than not are and off the beaten tourist path. This village has a sharp differ-
distinct from ecological effects, much in keeping with textbook entiation of activity between the tourist season and the off-sea-
prescriptions on impact studies. Often these are isolated regions, son.
or are treated as such both spatially and temporally. When link- Within the three villages, the study focuses on the effects of
ages with the global economy are examined, an over general- population movement, as well as the consequent economic and
ized, neocolonial framework sometimes is emphasized (3) at the social changes upon the sand dunes ecosystem and khazan agro
cost of local peculiarities and details which could be as impor- ecosystem. Each ecosystem has been affected differently in each
tant, if not more so, in determining the tourism outcome differ- of the three study sites. Sand dunes are mounds of drift sand
ences between destinations. This study will take into account the topped with vegetation on the beach. The sand dunes in each of
historical, social, legal, political, and ecological antecedents that the three villages are distinct. Calangute has dunes averaging in
led to a variety of forms of tourism to Goa, and then evaluate height from 5–6 m; the dunes found in Anjuna are low spread
the effect of tourism upon Goa’s coastal land-use and land-cover across its limited beach cover; and higher dunes of 5–8 m exist
change. in Cavelossim. Sand dunes from a dynamic ecosystem with a
Goa is a small region on the west coast of India, with possi- development and sustenance influenced by a number of natural
bly the longest colonial history in Asia (1510 to 1961). Hence, factors, such as the action of the wind and waves.
the recent emergence and development of tourism (spanning four The first step in the formation of a dune, by plants tolerant to
decades) is examined in the context of a variety of colonial and salt, is a berm, which is an accumulation of sand brought up by
post-colonial regimes which spurred other types of migration the waves on the beach at a point just above the highest high
(both out-migration of local people to other countries for jobs tide. The plants flourish with the organic matter brought by

Ambio Vol. 31 No. 4, June 2002 © Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences 2002 295
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waves during storms or heavy winds. The berm swells due to tions for ethnographic exploration. The assessment of land-cover
the aeolian import of sand (8). Dune vegetation traps sand, and and ecosystem change in the study villages was carried in 1966
thereby increases the amount of sand in the dunes. Dune veg- and 1999 using satellite imagery to capture the changes cover-
etation is adapted to the rigors of wind and waves. Sand dunes ing the pre-tourism period and the current tourism period.
play a vital role in protecting the coast from erosion and flood-
ing. One of the important factors for dune stability is its vegeta- RESULTS
tion cover (9). Dunes and their vegetation act as natural barri-
ers that prevent sand from entering the hinterland, and thus pro- Land-cover Change, 1966 to 1999
tect agricultural fields and settlement areas behind the dunes. Ad- The analysis calculates the proportion of land-cover categories
ditionally, the dunes add to the aesthetic beauty of the beach, for each village at each time period. The percentage area under
giving them a ’pristine look’ that attracts tourists. However, they each category of land-cover to the total village area was esti-
are vulnerable to anthropogenic pressures of trampling feet, ve- mated for both years; 1966 and 1999. The change in area under
hicles, and cattle. Other anthropogenic factors such as constant each category of land-cover and the percentage change over the
walking, playing, dumping of waste, and destruction of the dune base year were calculated to analyze the extent of land-cover
vegetation can retard the evolvement of dunes. Mining for sand, change. This has been compared across the land-cover catego-
or for temporary structures/infrastructures, or just for removal ries to find the extent as well as the direction of the land-cover
of a visual obstruction to the sea, has destroyed many sand dunes, change. Land-cover changes were analyzed especially for areas
which are not easily repaired or restored. under coconut groves and wetland agriculture. Data were ob-
Khazans are agro-ecosystems in the estuarine flood plains. tained from topographic sheets and interpretation of satellite im-
These agro-ecosystems have evolved over centuries through an ages and supplemented by field knowledge to accurately explain
intricate system of sluice gates and bunding (10). Khazan lands the changes in cover.
are very productive, owing to the accumulation of silt, which Two measures, which are particularly important for assessing
adds fertile organic material, as well as providing diverse out- the effects of permanent migrants and tourism are i) the area with
puts by regulating salinity. Khazan lands can be used to grow tourist infrastructures; and ii) the area that is built upon with
two crops of paddy rice in a year, or can be used for agriculture some sort of human-made structure (13). The area with tourist
during the monsoon, fish farming after the monsoon, and salt infrastructure was calculated from surveys in the field in 1999
panning during the summer. A traditional common property (these results are reported later). The built area was obtained
management system, Gaunkari or Comminidades, maintains the through the interpretation of satellite imageries. The proportion
khazans and distributes the benefits to community members. This of tourist-related infrastructure to total built area serves as a
management system shows signs of breaking down across the measure of the role that tourism-related population movements
three communities as a result of population movement, economic play in bringing about land-cover changes.
and social change, and shifting values for land-use. Results for land-cover changes are interpreted for each village
Multiple methods were used to analyze the effects of tourism separately, and a brief comparison across the three villages is
on land-use, land-cover, and ecosystem health. Tourist-related provided at the end of this discussion.
population movements and infrastructure were captured through
a survey of village households and tourist establishments in three Calangute
villages. A review of historic migration in coastal Goa was car- Figure 1 shows the land-cover maps for 1966 and 1999 prepared
ried out from primary data and secondary literature. Data about from topographic maps and satellite imagery for the Calangute
the two ecosystems and their management was obtained from village. In 1966, there were three distinct land-cover zones run-
primary and secondary data, along with assessments by local ning almost parallel to the coast. The first zone, along the sea
experts. The processes underlying ecosystem changes were ex- front, consists of the beach and foreshore dune area, which are
amined through a micro-ethnography in one of the study villages used mostly by local fisherman and beach tourists (14). The ex-
(11). This provided details about economic, social, and land-use tent of this zone cannot be clearly demarcated in the 1966 maps.
transformations that occur when tourism ‘happens’ to an area The next zone is the coconut grove land-cover, located between
(12). The ethnographic study and the survey were run concur- the wetland agriculture zone and the beach and dune zone. This
rently. Hence, it was possible to use ethnographic knowledge to land-cover category covered 5.1 km2, about 43% of the total vil-
design and refine the questionnaire, and also to provide ques- lage area in 1966. The third and innermost region is under

Source: Topographic map Source: IRS 1D LISS III and PAN

merged Satellite image

Figure 1. Calangute:
Land cover in 1966
and 1999.

296 © Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences 2002 Ambio Vol. 31 No. 4, June 2002
http://www.ambio.kva.se
wetland agriculture. This includes both khazan and kher agri- km2 is classified as built area, and is scattered throughout the
cultural lands (15). In 1966, this area covered 3.4 km2 or 29% coconut grove area. The area under scrub is 2.96 km2, around
of the village area, of which it is estimated that 1.85 km2 (55%) 23% of the village area, and 6% was under forest cover (0.79
was khazan land held by the Communidades (16). There was no km2). The village area under salt-pans was 0.47%, and 23% of
reference to built area in the 1966 maps. Only a few houses scat- the village area was under wetland agriculture (2.93 km2). Beach
tered in the coconut groves existed at that time. With tourism, area was 0.27 km2, which is around 2% of the village area.
large areas of land became built areas, mainly catering to tour- Land-cover has undergone change in the last three decades in
ism. Concurrently, growth of population and nuclear families Anjuna village. The coconut grove and wetland agriculture ar-
also led to expansion of built area. The area classified as forest eas have been reduced by 2.5 km2 and 0.6 km2, respectively.
also covers significant portions of the village land area, particu- Maximum change is observed in the coconut grove area, with a
larly in the southeast (2.3 km2 or 19.7% of village land area.) 32% reduction. Satellite imagery interpretation shows that most
The area classified as being under salt-pans is relatively small, of the built area is in the coconut grove area. By 1999, the area
and is found in the upper northeast portion of the village land classified as wetland agriculture had decreased by 17%. A dra-
area. matic increase in scrub-land also occurred. This significant
Land-cover has undergone considerable change in this village change in the area under scrub in Anjuna is due to reasons similar
between the 1966 and 1999 periods. The village area covered to those discussed above for Calangute. The area under forest
by coconut groves was only 2.65 km2 (23% of village land area) cover declined by 12%.
in 1999, a reduction of 48% since 1966. By 1999, the area clas- The small beaches lined with coconut trees have been increas-
sified as built was 1.62 km2, or about 14% of the village land ingly used for tourism, indicating a change from a distinct use
area, which is scattered in the former coconut grove area. The of coasts for fishing. Most of the land-use and cover changes
area classified as wetland agriculture was about 3 km2, or 25% are observed along the coconut area. Wetland agriculture has yet
of the village land area, a reduction of 12% since 1966, all of to witness any major cover change. However, field visits re-
which is in the khazan lands. vealed that in many parts of the village, wetland agricultural area
In addition, scrub-land classification shows a significant in- is being left fallow during the months of November to March,
crease. Of the village land area, 12% or 1.35 km2, is classified instead of supporting a second crop. The explanation may lie in
as scrub-land, found primarily in the upper northern rim and the the fact that these months correspond to the tourist season, and
southeast section of the village. This suggests an increase of the villagers find greater remuneration in being engaged in tour-
647% of scrub-land in the village. This is explained in part by ism-related activities rather than in agriculture.
the fact that in 1966, this land was merged together with coco-
nut groves, and in 1999 it was possible to separate the two us- Cavelossim
ing satellite images. In part, the increase is due to the cashew- Figure 3 shows the land-cover maps for Cavelossim. The topo-
and other plantations undertaken in the village during this pe- graphic maps of Cavelossim for 1966 show that Cavelossim had
riod. Area under forest cover has decreased by 30% since 1996. nearly 3.43 km2 (41% of village area) under coconut groves. Of
the village area, 23% was under wetland agriculture, and 0.8%
Anjuna was under salt-pans. The area under scrub was 1.06 km2. The
The land-cover maps for Anjuna are given in Figure 2. In 1966, area under beach was 0.46 km2, which was around 5.5% of the
the classification of the topographic maps reveals that 60% of total village area.
the village area is classified as coconut grove, and 27% as The interpretation of the 1999 images shows that Cavelossim
wetland agriculture. The khazan type land is located on the banks has nearly 16% area under coconut groves and 21% area under
of a tributary to the Baga River in the southern part of the vil- wetland agriculture. This area mostly is covered with shrubs and
lage, alongside 0.06 km2 or 10% of village area classified as salt- grasses, except in those areas when it has been levelled and
pans. About 6.9% of the village area (0.9 km2) is classified as planted with trees or grasses. The dune vegetation covers about
forest, and 0.04% (0.01 km2) is classified as scrub. The beach, 16% of the village area. Salt-pans cover 1.7% of the village.
which is rocky, occupies an area of about 0.48 km2 in this vil- About 9% of the area is built upon, covering 0.75 km2. About
lage, or 3.68% of the village land area. 10% of the village area is beach and another 10% is scrub.
The area under coconut groves in 1999 in Anjuna was 5.37 A comparison across the two time frames of 1966 and 1999
km2, which is around 41% of the total village area. Around 0.5 shows that the coconut grove area has been reduced to less than

Source: Topographic map Source: IRS 1D LISS III and PAN

merged Satellite image

Figure 2. Anjuna:
Land cover in
1966 and 1999.

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half. This is mainly due to the classification of dune vegetation than the other destinations, as will be discussed later. The analy-
as a separate category in the satellite imageries. For compari- sis of change over the period 1966 to 1999 indicates that the built
son purposes, if the area under coconut grove (1.16 km2), dune upon area has been drawn from land that formerly was under
vegetation (1.32 km2), and plantation (0.16 km2) is combined, coconut groves, wetland agriculture, and forests. Sand dunes are
then coconut grove area will cover about 2.6 km2 (31.6%). This experiencing extensive damage. They are modified to cater to
area is then about 0.8 km2 less than that of 1966. Most of this the needs of tourists, especially for accommodation, recreation
area has been converted to built area, which covers about 0.75 purposes, and gaining access to beaches. The extent of ecosys-
km2. The area under wetland agriculture (mostly khazan) has tem modification varies with this age of tourism, as well as the
been reduced by 7% (0.13 km2), and has been converted to salt- nature of the tourism.
pans. Across the study villages, a process of homogenization was
seen, whereby land-used for coconuts, salt-panning, paddy pro-
Land-cover Comparisons across Villages duction, and recreation is being converted to built area to sup-
Table 1 shows the land-cover changes for the various classifi- port tourist infrastructure. Instead of holding land as a portfolio
cations for each village between 1966 and 1999. All three vil- of natural assets and returns from them, society is choosing to
lages showed substantial changes across many of the classifica- trade those returns for the higher return obtainable from the
tions. On the whole, Calangute showed most change. The inter- “space” attribute of land. Land conversions occur to create a uni-
pretation of land-cover data for 1966 and 1999 for the three study form base upon which to build the new production system to
villages shows that the highest land-cover change has occurred support tourism.
in Calangute. The study reveals that in some cases there is no land-cover
Calangute is the middle budget destination, and has the high- change in the study area, but only land-use change (17). The pat-
est percentage of village area which is built upon (Table 2). How- tern of change varies depending on the nature of tourism,
ever, if the area under tourist infrastructure is considered as a whether high, middle, or low budget. The major land-use change
percentage of this built upon area, Cavelossim, the high budget is in Anjuna, the low budget destination, while the major land-
destination, has the highest share followed by Calangute and cover changes are in Calangute and Cavelossim, the middle and
Anjuna, the low budget destination. high budget destinations. Calangute has intensive tourism (more
Table 2 shows that Cavelossim has proportionally more area tourists per unit), whereas in Cavelossim tourism is of an ex-
under tourist infrastructure, even though tourist arrivals are lower tensive form (using more area to cater to fewer people). In con-
trast, in Anjuna, even though the number of
tourist arrivals is more than in Cavelossim, the
built area and infrastructure is less. In
Figure 3. Cavelossim: Land cover in 1966 and 1999.
Calangute, the land area traditionally under
salt-pans has not changed, but field observa-
tions indicate that all the salt-pans are not used
Source: Topographic map Source: IRS1D LISS III and PAN for salt production and many are, in fact, aban-
merged satellite image
doned. Detailed fieldwork reveals that the salt-
pans also are being used as sites for new tour-
ism infrastructure. Hotel projects have oc-
curred along some of the salt-pans, and these
locations increasingly are preferred as tourist
infrastructure sites for the following reasons:
i) The beaches are congested with houses and
hotel complexes;
ii) The salt-pans offer a view of a lake and
open paddy fields in front; and,
iii) They provide opportunities for boating and
navigating to the beach (Fig. 4).
Thus, the khazan lands have been converted
from having a use that involved the produc-
tion of paddy, salt, and even coconuts on the
dykes, to increasingly having a visual use or
to serve as a tourist infrastructure site. The di-
versity of use that one unit of land provided
because of its productive attributes has given
way to a homogenization based on its spatial
attribute. Over time the space attributes of these lands have ac-
Table 1. Land cover change between 1966–1999, evidence quired a new value, which is not linked to its abilities to pro-
from space. duce salt and paddy, but its abilities to support infrastructure such
Village as hotels, restaurants, and other tourist systems. Thus, in some
villages there is little land-cover change, but significant land-
% Change in area between Calangute Anjuna Cavelossim
1966 and 1999 use change. The reason is that patterns of out-migration and dif-
ferent forms of tourism have yielded different ways of valuing
Wetland agriculture –12 –17 –7 the ecosystem.
Coconut grove –48 31 –62
Beach and sand dunes Extensive –* Extensive
Forest –30 –12 No forest
Salt pan 0 3 113 DISCUSSION
Scrub 647 –21
Tourism
*No data are available for 1966 to make a numerical comparison.
Interpretation is based on villagers’ observations, expert opinions, and Goa was put on the international tourist map in the 1970s by
fieldwork observations.
the “flower children.” In the 1980s, state government policy sup-

298 © Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences 2002 Ambio Vol. 31 No. 4, June 2002
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ported charter tourism. Today, Goa is host to all types of tour- ers in establishments, but there also is a considerable group of
ists, both domestic and international; backpack travellers, char- households who rent out rooms, taxis, and motorcycles. In
ter tourists, and independent tourists. Interestingly, each type of Anjuna, we find that involvement in tourist activity is even more
tourist has concentrated in different pockets in Goa, and has been broadly based, as household members are involved as workers,
in some isolation from the other. These different tourist types renters, and guest-house owners/operators. In Cavelossim, the
have different consumption patterns, and cause the destination involvement is essentially as workers in establishments. Own-
to respond accordingly. The dominant reasons for the tourist at- ership by local households of hotels and restaurants in high
traction to Goa, amongst all types of tourists, are leisure, social budget tourist destination Cavelossim is non-existent. This pic-
and cultural interests, but more specifically its beaches. Hence, ture suggests that in the low budget tourism village, many more
tourism in Goa has been concentrated mostly on the coastline, locals are involved and in a wider range of activities. There is
and can be termed as coastal tourism (18–21). also a more uniform occupational distribution, with locals in-
Since the late 1970s, the growth of tourism has been rapid. volved as workers as well as owner/operators or renters. In mid-
According to official tourist statistics, while 1981 to 1986 saw dle budget tourism, locals are more concentrated in the group
an increase in domestic and international tourists, 1986 to 1991 of workers and renters rather than as owners of establishments.
saw a decrease in growth rates for domestic and international In high budget tourism, the occupational distribution is far more
tourists. Tourist arrivals in Goa have increased during the last 8 skewed, with locals being predominantly workers in tourist es-
years, with the rate of growth of international tourists being tablishments or owners of tourist taxis/motorcycles. This points
higher than that of domestic tourists (22). This is due largely to to the degree of involvement of locals in low budget tourism,
the fall in the value of the rupee in the 1990s, which has made making this type of tourism conducive to more interaction be-
Goa that much more attractive.
In 1991, the population of Goa was 1.2
million and the tourist inflow was as high as Table 2. Tourist infrastructure and built upon area in the study villages.
0.8 million, a ratio of 71:100. By 1998, this
ratio had risen to 83. This increase incorpo- Total area Built upon area Tourist infrastructure area
rates the growth in both the numbers of in- Village km2 km2 % of km2 % of % of built
ternational as well as domestic tourists, with village area village area upon area
the share of international tourists showing an Calangute 11.72 1.62 13.78 0.77 6.61 47.80
increase from 6.7% to 22% between 1981 (middle budget
destination)
and 1997. This was marked by fluctuations. Anjuna 13 0.49 3.77 0.14 1.06 28.08
In the period 1981 to 1983, the share was (low budget
destination)
less than 10%. It touched 11% to 12% in Cavelossim 8.34 0.75 9 0.45 5.38 59.80
1985/86, declined in the following 3 years, (high budget
destination)
and showed a continuous rise after 1991,
reaching 22% in 1997. Figure 4 represents
the pattern of growth in tourist arrivals to
Goa from 1981 to 1997. Figure 4.
The villages included in this research re- Tourist
flect the range of villages found in coastal arrivals
areas in Goa. Tourism came into Calangute in Goa.
Source:
and Anjuna in the late 1960s and 1970s, and Tourism
was dominated by international backpackers. Statistics,
The houses around the beach were quick to Government
of Goa,
provide suitable extensions or set up shacks 1977.
and restaurants. A number of guesthouses
and smaller hotels also emerged as tourism
grew through the 1970s and the early 1980s.
Developers set up hotels and opportunities
for employment, and for providing other
services such as taxis, phone booths, recrea-
tional facilities, travel and tour booking
counters and shopping avenues. This pro-
vided complementary (or alternative) in-
comes to the native host population and mi-
grants, thereby reducing their dependence on
traditional income sources. Survey results
from 1999 reveal a large involvement of the
host population in tourism in all three vil-
lages. The share of the host population in-
volved in tourism is much higher in
Calangute and Anjuna, the more established
destinations compared to Cavelossim, whose
involvement with tourism began in the
1980s. However, if the nature of tourism is
considered, the pattern of involvement with
tourism varies across the three villages. (Ta-
ble 3).
In Calangute, the largest involvement for
residents in the tourist economy is as work- Former salt pans being converted for tourist recreation purposes. Photo: G. Henn.

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tween host and guest population and, perhaps, to greater cultural estimates made based upon census data. (Table 4). In the vil-
change. The high budget tourism is far more secluded and dis- lages of Calangute and Anjuna, the more established destinations,
tanced from locals. migration rates are higher than those of Cavelossim. These tour-
Tourists have been arriving at Calangute and Anjuna since the ist-related migrations are the latest chapter in the migration his-
early 1970s. The secondary data do not provide detailed arrival tory of these villages.
figures for the villages, although the figures for the taluka (23),
to which this village belongs, have shown a continuous upward Patterns and History of Migration
trend. To gain an idea of the extent and nature of these move- From the early part of the 20th century to the time of liberation
ments in the study village, an assessment was carried out based from Portuguese rule in 1961, out-migration was both a chronic
upon a detailed survey done in 1999 using occupancy rates (the and an acute condition in the coastal villages of Goa, outstrip-
foreign and domestic mix of tourists and average norms for du- ping any in-migration. This was particularly so in Calangute and
ration of stay). Based on these estimations the highest number Anjuna. The population of these villages increased gradually into
of tourist arrivals in the 1999 season was 50 196 tourists in the early part of the first decade of the 20th century. Then it ex-
Calangute, followed by Anjuna with 22 668, and 21 102 for perienced a decline into 1961. From 1961 to date it has shown
Cavelossim. a steep increase.
Tourism as a service industry requires people. Not only does The decline in the first half of the 20th century is due mainly
the tourism sector attract skilled and unskilled migrant laborers to out-migration. The abrupt post-liberation rise is due to in-mi-
for construction and service in restaurants and hotels, but it also gration. A majority of the out-migrants moved to British India,
attracts skilled laborers for hotel and restaurant management as and in smaller numbers to the other British colonies including
well as other categories. The analysis, based on survey data, Africa. Some of the reasons for out-migration were poverty, bet-
clearly reveals that most of the workers in the tourism sector are ter social and employment prospects. Both push and pull fac-
migrants (24). Overall, total tourism related migration is high- tors contributed to out-migration. Out-migration resulted mainly
est in the middle budget destination, Calangute, followed by low from coastal areas in Goa. This contributed significantly to the
budget destination, Anjuna, and then the high budget destina- internal migration to coastal Goa to meet the demands of agri-
tion, Cavelossim. cultural work. This trend continued after 1961.
There also is a spurt in the permanent migrant category dur- Liberation in 1961 witnessed a new migratory cycle, and this
ing the periods from 1986 to 1990, and 1991 to 1995, the fast- time its net effect was the reverse, i.e. in-migration far out-
est growing periods for tourism in Goa. After these time peri- stripped out-migration. This post-liberation migration spread
ods, the curve for permanent migrants flattens, while the sea- across the state, and was due largely to developmental activi-
sonal migrants continue to grow in consonance with the cumu- ties. The relatively high standard of living in Goa contributed
lative infrastructure curve. to this in-migration. The new migrants were drawn from across
The trends in migration to service tourism are supported by different occupations. In-migration within Goa also increased as
the people from the noncoastal areas moved to the coastal ar-
Table 3. Household involvement in tourism*. Source: (33).
eas, where the major share of developmental activities were be-
ing undertaken. There also was some return migration from Af-
Calangute Anjuna Cavelossim rica as these colonies won independence in the early 1960s.
Households involved in tourism (%) 51 63 29 Some Goans returned home due to the policy of the
Of which: Africanization of the administration (25–27).
Workers in tourist
establishments (%) 41 23 50 A new wave of out-migration, although much smaller in scale,
Lessors/owners of tourist taxis/ was witnessed in the 1970s, this time to the Gulf countries. This
motorcycles(%) 20 32 33
Owners/operators of hotels/ also is evident in Cavelossim. Unlike earlier out-migration to
restaurants/ shacks (%) 27 23 28 British India or Africa, Gulf migration was possible only as tem-
Renters of rooms/ houses to
tourists (%) 38 30 7.5 porary migrant laborers, since laws in the Gulf inhibit settlement.
Providing services to tourist
establishments (%) 3 5 2.5 This meant that all monetary saving from this migration was re-
mitted for use in Goa. In the earlier migration only a part was
* Note: Totals add to more than 100 as some households have more than
one involvement. remitted, the rest being kept abroad for prospects of settlement.
This strengthened local demand and the flow of expenditure
within Goa much more than the migration in the first half of the
Table 4. Migrant workers. century. Housing was an important component of this demand,
as remittances were invested in improving or enlarging housing
Migrant Interstate Intra-state Total number
workers workers workers of workers stock. This had implications for the land.
in the tourism During the last 40 years, migration data suggest that Calangute
sector
and Anjuna had positive migration rates during the period of
(As percentage of all workers in the tourism sector) 1961 to 1971 and negative rates for Cavelossim during the same
Calangute 68 36 32 4501 decade. Migration rates were lower in the decade 1971 to 1981
Anjuna 62 42 19 1661 for Calangute and Anjuna, and positive for Cavelossim. During
Cavelossim 74 30 44 1140
1981 to 1991 the migration rates were positive for all study vil-
lages (6, 27–29).
Toward the end of 1971 tourists arrived at the coastal villages,
Table 5. Village level population growth rates and net migration heralding another type of population movement. This included
growth rates.
the tourists and the workers who migrated to service the activ-
Village 1961–1971 1971–1981 1981–1991 ity.
r rm r rm r rm
Calangute 2.41 0.88 2.38 0.68 2.17 0.93 Understanding Transformation
Anjuna 2.50 0.99 1.99 0.28 1.7 0.46
Cavelossim –0.75 –2.28 2.53 0.83 1.77 0.53 Before the entry of tourism, coastal resources served both as the
Source: Estimated from the village level census data production and consumption of goods. That is, these resources
r = rate of growth of population were used in the production process to earn an income, but they
rm = migration growth rates
also were used in final consumption, in the sense of the aesthet-

300 © Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences 2002 Ambio Vol. 31 No. 4, June 2002
http://www.ambio.kva.se
ics and pleasure that these provided the locals. With tourism, it tivation and productivity in agriculture were the order of the day
is evident that the villagers have increasingly come to see these in the 1960s. To that extent Goa was “out of place,” and hence
resources as a means of providing goods and services to tour- had to fit into the prevalent terms of the natural rhetoric and new
ists. Earlier producer use, e.g. producing coconuts or salt, has legal institutions. To do so, Goa introduced land reforms through
become a secondary activity or is abandoned. Over time, as less two major pieces of legislation, the Agricultural Tenancy Act
attention is paid to this now secondary activity in terms of in- (1964) and the Mundkars Act (1975), and subsequent amend-
vestments, resource quality will decline. The changes brought ments (30, 31). These created new agrarian relations, and in
about by the needs and pressures of the tourist industry result many cases those who came to work as agricultural tenants be-
in a dilution and erosion of the local communities’ sustainable came the deemed owners of land.
use of coastal resources. This greatly complicated the agricultural system, and also re-
Tourism attempts to cater to the needs of a global tourist by duced the incentive of the former owners to continue to invest
emulating conditions tourists want. This may not coincide with in the productivity of the land. The new owners (the former ten-
what the tourist is really looking for, since they may be looking ants) often were too small to be able to do so. This resulted in
for a more “local and variegated” experience. It often is assumed, pressures to move out of agriculture and orchard land, which cre-
by host populations and governments, that by recreating the con- ated a source of supply of land for tourism. Thus, when tourism
ditions tourists are accustomed to, higher rates of tourism will occurred in the village, if there was a demand for land the in-
result. centives already were in place for this change.
The findings of this study suggest that it is not tourist inflow
per se, but the quantity and type of resources that are used to Changes in Khazan Management Regime
service this inflow that bring about changes in coastal ecosys- While the changes above had many implications, one major rea-
tems. The implications of other migrations (in and out) for son for the conversion of the khazan lands was the change in
coastal land and ecosystems also become clear. These arise from: the common property management system, the Communidades
i) Changed perceptions of the land owner/operator about the rela- (32). The multiple uses of these lands for the production of fish,
tive values of the assets that the land portfolio comprises; and coconuts, and rice during the year are dependent on the mainte-
ii) alternative nonfarm income, which reduced dependency on nance of dykes, and the careful monitoring and control of water
land for productive work. These created a frame of mind where salinity. The Communidade carried out this task. The fall of the
conversion was possible. Such development occurred in stages Communidade system led to a deterioration of the dykes. This
wherein land primarily served as a source of the goods and serv- came about due to a series of interventions by the colonial state.
ices that the locals need. Here the high dependence on the land In many villages, the system lost its original members and was
created a need to use it in a way that was not detrimental to its left with shareholders. These shareholders now were some of the
long-term ability to provide the goods and services required. largest landlords, and by origin, did not belong to the village.
Without migration and remittance income, this attitude began to The Communidade also had lost coconut orchards. Its owner-
change, due to alternative sources of income and employment. ship, however, continued to extend over the paddy fields, all of
Land was kept in its traditional use as long as the potential of which were khazans. They were rented out to its members, later
the land to produce could be maintained through alternative only to its shareholder-members, by various means such as auc-
sources of labor, to replace those that had out-migrated. How- tions and leases. From the lease income, the Communidade main-
ever, as this became difficult, either due to economic factors tained the fields and a number of other public works, and gave
(high cost of labor), or due to land laws, incentives emerged to some of the balance away as dividends to its shareholders.
change the way land was being held. Those who replace open- The system broke down gradually during the colonial period.
ings provided by the out-migrants may not have had the same But in the post-colonial period, more formal legal interventions
attachment to the land. They only saw it as a source of employ- relating to tenure and organizational structures changed the sys-
ment. If an alternative opportunity is found, it is taken up with tem more drastically. The agricultural land laws, which made
ease. The final push toward conversion was the ability to cash the tenant secure on the land, removed the income of the
in on the space attribute of land. Migrants to the Gulf and sub- Communidade accrued through rent lease of paddy fields. This
sequent remittances in the mid- and late-1980s made this possi- was the main source of income. Therefore, it became increas-
ble. ingly difficult to maintain these lands. Thus, state intervention
Migration and tourism, however, would not be as potent driv- accelerated the decline of this system.
ers of land-use changes if certain other processes—formal and Interventions in the Communidade system made the property
informal, state and private, local and national—were not already rights inherent within the system more clear and specified. How-
underway. This makes the transition both attractive and possi- ever, the management system that had evolved through centu-
ble. These processes involve changes in both the social order and ries worked because the regime involved both rights and duties
property regimes brought about by legal, economic, and politi- toward the resource. By overspecification of the rights without
cal changes in the state of Goa. attention to the duties, the system took away the main basis for
protecting the quality of the resource. The overspecification of
Transformation of Property Rights Regimes rights led to the strengthening of individual over communitarian
Goa was liberated from Portuguese colonial rule and integrated rights, and thus paved the way for market forces to enter deci-
into India in 1961. This changed the institutions through which sively and press for change that had implications for diversity
hegemonic control was maintained. Popular democracy, electoral (33).
politics, and universal adult franchise were the new political in-
stitutions. There was a rapid shift from the dominance of the pri- CONCLUSION
mary to that of the tertiary sector in the economic structure. The This paper explored the transformations in coastal lands and eco-
smallness of the state, the strength of the demonstration effect systems exposed to tourist pressure and migrations. It explained
arising from the high visibility of those engaged in the tertiary the social and institutional factors that made this transition both
sector, and the desire to cross class lines all created pressures possible and attractive to the agents. More specifically, this re-
toward moving out of agriculture. search highlighted the following:
While Goa was moving into tertiary gear, the rest of the coun- i) That it is not the in-migrant alone who causes land-use and
try was increasing the productivity in agriculture and industrial cover change, but also the out-migrant and the host population
development. Changes in agricultural land laws to increase mo- through changing consumption.

Ambio Vol. 31 No. 4, June 2002 © Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences 2002 301
http://www.ambio.kva.se
ii) That it is not population movements alone that lead to eco- References and Notes
system change, but the changes in relations between people and 1. De Kadt, E. (ed.). 1979. Tourism: Passport to Development. Oxford, Oxford Univer-
sity Press.
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Routledge).
systems to change. Aspirations affect existing relations. Tenu- 5. Tourists are not a homogenous community. They have differing needs and tastes, and
rial and land laws also have been important instruments in ena- different spending powers. Tourism related infrastructure that is developed to accom-
modate and service this inflow is also diverse.
bling and even requiring these changes. The overspecification 6. Government of India 1991. District Census Handbook. Government printing press,
Panaji, Goa. (Series 6: Part XII -A XII-B village and town directory and village and
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the Goa Coast, Goa. PhD Thesis, Goa University, India.
10. Bunding is the building of embankments for holding water in rice fields or fish ponds.
11. This is not a typical ethnography, as the period of this study did not allow for long
term investigations that an ethnography would require. An ethnographer with past ex-
perience in Calangute village made it possible to recover some insider knowledge.
12. While the findings of an ethnographic study are limited in its generalisability, because
the state of Goa is small, villages have a similar social and political context. To that
extent the dominant processes identified will be the same in the other coastal villages.
It is acknowledged, however, aware that the micro processes captured in the researched
villages may not necessarily be true for the other villages.
Ligia Noronha, is a Senior Fellow at the Tata Energy 13. It is important to note here that in the research, the built upon categories support host
populations and tourism related migrant workers, as well as the tourists. However, the
Research Institute, (TERI) India, and the Convenor of its tourist infrastructure accommodates essentially the tourists. By tourism infrastructure,
Western Regional Centre at Goa. Her work at TERI has been the study refers to the following establishments that cater to the tourists: i) Hotels and
in multidisciplinary projects and includes coordination and other accommodations in different star and non-star categories, ii) food and beverage,
including all restaurants, cold drink stalls, and shacks, and, iii) other tourism related
research in issues relating to the development-environment establishments, comprising phone booths, shops, handicraft/garment shops and stalls,
interface, mining and the environment, and global and provisional stores. Questionnaires were canvassed to obtain information on the fol-
environmental issues with particular focus on North-South lowing variables: area under each establishment, and the year of construction of the
relations, and coastal policy and management. She serves establishment. A 10% sample size or a minimum of 30 samples for canvassing the ques-
tionnaires in the establishments was adopted.
on a number of government committees, is a member of the 14. The uses were captured during the field visits.
Mining and Energy Network, United Kingdom, and of the 15. The different types of land result from its location and soil characteristics.
Global Assurance Group of Mining and Minerals 16. Almedia J.C. 1967. Aspects of Agricultural Activity in Goa, Daman and Diu. Govern-
ment Printing Press, Goa.
Sustainable Development Project of the International 17. The distinction of land use and land cover follows the definitions of the LUCC Re-
Institution for Environment and Development, United search Plan. Land cover is the biophysical state of the earth’s surface and its immedi-
Kingdom. Her address: Tata Energy Research Institute, ate subsurface. Changes in land cover include changes in biotic diversity, actual and
Western Regional Centre, G4, Block 7, Models Residency, potential primary productivity, soil quality, etc. Land use refers to both the manner in
which the biophysical attributes of the land are manipulated, and the intent underlying
Near St. Inez Church, Panaji, Goa, India. that manipulation - the purpose for which the land is used. Turner, B.L. II., Skole, D.,
E-mail: [email protected] Sanderson, S., Fischer, G., Fresco, L. and Leemans, R. 1995. Land-use and Land Cover
Change. Science / Research Plan, IGBP Report No. 35 and HDP Report No.7, 20 pp.
Alito Siqueira teaches and researches at the Department of 18. Kirloskar Consultants Ltd. 1994. Report on Study of Tourism Industry in Goa. Direc-
Sociology at Goa University. In addition to post-graduate torate of Tourism, Goa.
19. Alvares, C. 1993. Fish Curry and Rice: A Citizens Report on the Goan Environment.
teaching, he also has acted as a local supervisor for a The Other India Press, Goa, 77 pp.
number of international students. His research interests are 20. Sawkar, K., Noronha, L., Mascarenhas, A. and Chauhan, O.S. 1998. Tourism and the
focused on culture, and his area interest is Goa and India. Environment: Issues of Concern in the Coastal Zone of Goa in Tourism and the Envi-
The general thrust of his research has been to use tourism ronment: Case Studies of Goa, India and the Maldives. The Economic Development
Institutions of the World Bank, Washington, 19 pp.
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within Goa. Presently he is editing a book on tourism in Goa New Delhi, mimeograph.
for the Other India Press. He is a member of the Indian 22. Government of Goa 1998. Tourist Statistics, Goa. Department of Tourism, Goa.
Sociological Association. His address: Goa University, 23. A term used for an administrative region, which comprises a number of villages.
24. Tourism supports both permanent and seasonal migrants. The former are defined as
Taleigao Plateau, Goa, India. persons who come into and settle in the tourist destination to take advantage of the
E-mail: [email protected] employment opportunities there. Seasonal migrants stay only for the tourist season, gen-
erally from August to May. Permanent and seasonal migrants can be inter-state mi-
S. Sreekesh is a Fellow at the Tata Energy Research grants or intra-state migrants. While the inter-state migrants primarily refer to those
Institute. He is a geoscientist, with a PhD in geography, and people who migrate from other states to Goa, the intra-state category constitutes the
movement of Goans within the state. The survey obtained the number of years since
a remote sensing and geographic information system the inter-state seasonal migrants have been visiting Goa, and the number of years since
specialist. He has worked in a wide range of geospatial the permanent migrants have been residing in Goa. The categories of years of stay con-
database development projects, and has practical sidered are 1–5 years, 5–10 years, 10–20 years, and more than 20 years.
experience in designing and developing spatial information 25. Mascarenhas-Keyes, 1990. International migration: Its development, reproduction and
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Part II-A. General population tables.
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Lubina F. Qureshy currently is working on her PhD in and village Directory and village and town-wise primary census abstract Goa district,
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economics (poverty), at the University of Sussex. Her area 29. Government of India 1981. Primary Census Abstract: Goa, Daman and Diu. General
of study is natural resource accounting, the state of the Population Tables and Part II-B (Series 29).
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July 1992). Government Printing Press, Panaji, Goa.
environment-development interface. Her address: 36R4, 31. Government of Goa 1983. The Mundkar Act and Rules (Incorporating Amendments
Brighthelm, University of Sussex, Falmer, Brighton BN1 up to 31 October 1983). Government Printing Press, Panaji, Goa.
9SA, United Kingdom. 32. Kamat, N. and Varde, N.P.S. 1992. Report of the Agricultural Land Development Panel.
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33. Noronha, R. 2000. Common-property resource-management in traditional societies. In:
Saltanat Kazi, is a research associate at the Western The Environment and Emerging Development Issues-Volume 1. Dasgupta, P. and Mäler,
K.G. (eds). Oxford University Press, Oxford, pp. 48–69. This paper refers to other cases
Regional Centre of the Tata Energy Research Institute. Her in which the CPR management systems went into a decline due to state intervention.
area of work has been in the interface between tourism 34. This paper is based on research supported by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur
development and environment. Her address: Tata Energy Foundation. Tata Energy Research Institute, 2000. Population, consumption and envi-
Research Institute, Western Regional Centre, G4, Block 7, ronment inter-relations: a tourist spot scenario, Tata Energy Research Institute, New
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Models Residency, Near St. Inez Church, Panaji, Goa, India.
E-mail: [email protected]

302 © Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences 2002 Ambio Vol. 31 No. 4, June 2002
http://www.ambio.kva.se