Sonali Phogat To Puri: Checks Be There On This Tuning To A ‘Curlie’ of Goa

 By D N Singh

It is lovely to watch the entrance of the Blue Flag Beach(BFB) on the sea shore of Puri. The expanse of  beach, better described as a golden sand bed, spanning the entire length and breadth of the shore. Even the new concept has not only become a new attraction but  the ground reality check unfolds a novelty as a refreshing rendezvous.

 

Down the days, the BFB has really become an MSP for the tourism sector. A stand-apart creation over a specified area, jaded with newness and tourist friendly facilities where a visitor can get a new feel far from the stark difference on the rest part of the shore.

 

One still wonder why the entire beach is not gone the way the particular patch of the BFB. When there is a will, it is said, there is a way. But the Puri sea beach as a whole has not graduated to the level it deserved.

There was a time when, even today, tourist from all over the world prefer a walk down the uneven and sandy tracks in Puri’s ‘Penthakata’ area which in late 70s, it was thronged by an international tribe called the ‘hippies’, who, perhaps, it was told, came in search of ‘nirvana’ through peace and freedom.

A much needed respite from their home nations where military and war hungry places were contrary to what sea beaches like Puri offer, a paradise on the far end bucolic sands of Penthakata, a settlement comprised of migrant fishermen from Andhra Pradesh.

Slowly the quest by the hippies turned to a culture when the visitors became post sun-set revelers through a very unwelcome entry of drugs, which slowly in a creeper like move seized the entire expanse of the beach.

Instances of drug abuse to sodomy cases were reported in the local media. Local youths were the first victims and it was not localised alone.

Checks On Freedom

After the pandemic there is a noticeable surge in tourist inflow to Puri, which is also the major citadel of devotion for Lord Jagannath, the presiding deity.

The recent incident in Goa has a message for all such coastal rendezvous in the country. Sonali Phogat, the popular actor and BJP leader who died at Curlies mysteriously. Pending the probe by the agencies, the role of drugs have come out to the fore.

For classy visitors like Phogat, the comfort of a lager before the surf, a piece of roasted lobster on your plate and the sunset, behind that something else remain cunningly hidden.

So, in places like Puri, which is a fabulous blend of religious virtue and a surrealistic sea beach, some odds are to be checked.

In the name of Blue Flag Beach, some limits can be drawn for the revelers from home and abroad before ‘Penthakata’ dons a Curlie culture.