“Where is Anjuna?” examines the ecological impact of development along the shoreline of Anjuna. Saachi traces the origin and history of Anjuna, further through the hippie movement of the 70’s and into the 90’s. Here she studies the impact of the violations of the Coastal Regulation Zones (CRZ’s) norms and the rampant development on the ecology of the shoreline and the traditional fishing communities residing here.
The legend goes that among Goans in Anjuna, a coastal village situated in North Goa, a building with a first floor or more is inauspicious. Many folktales surround one goddess, Bhumika Devi, who is believed to have cursed the village into maintaining ground floors only. As surreal as it may seem, the belief has become a construction rule, and many buildings that tried to build stacks over the ground have failed. It is only fitting, then, that the 6-kilometre Anjuna coast is now more built-up than beach, punctuated by storeyed buildings owned by outsiders. Hordes of restaurants, beach clubs and shacks stand tall, nearly overshadowing the sand. "We're stretched thin. Our villages are crushed," says an angry taverna owner, animatedly gesturing around him to ask, "Where is Anjuna?"
The hippie movement and Anjuna
"When the hippies first came to Goa, we did not want them," says the owner of Guru Bar, a staple at Anjuna beach since 1961. Her family has been around for almost 70 years. She attributes Anjuna's downfall to the arrival of the hippie trail in Anjuna, which went on to define the village and its culture. "There is no coastal activity here (fishing) anymore," she adds that while "everything is fine", Anjuna's shore exists primarily for its aesthetics. When the first hippies arrived in Goa in the 1960s from America and Europe, they reached Anjuna and Arambol. It was a discreet village - quiet, uneventful - without a name on the maps of the time, according to writer and musician Richard Gregory who followed the hippie trail. Because Goa was not a tourist destination yet, Anjuna had no places for outsiders to stay. The locals' culture shock and initial disdain turned warmer as the new residents began renting out rooms across the village and further into North Goa, marking the first Air BnBs in the state, and the first tourist economy.
In his book, A Pukka History of the Hippie Trail, Gregory recounts his stay in Anjuna in 1980, after the hippies had settled across North Goa.
While it started as a youth movement in America, the hippie movement gained global momentum in the 60s. With roots in social movements across Europe, it was influenced by the Vietnam war and civil rights. The new generation emphasised a relationship with nature, communal living, art and freedom of desire. Spirituality was important to the experience, often explored through drugs. Goa presented an unmaterialistic, indigenous life that was abundant with nature - a new opportunity for the movement.
Gregory was visiting his friend and musician Peter Lee, who, despite several years in and out of Goa, never adapted to the country, writing that Lee would never drink ‘local’ coffee, choosing instead the expensive Nescafe, and never ate Indian food.
Gregory writes in his book, "Goa had a lot going for it, but many Westerners were not interested in local culture. They roared around on motorbikes, ate egg and chips, drank beer." Gregory adds that at the time Goa was rich compared to the rest of India, having seen no beggars or slums in the state. Notably, he wrote, "In some ways, it was like those resorts in Spain that exist solely for the tourists, who drank Watneys Red Barrel and never learned a word of Spanish.”
Decades since Gregory came to visit his friend in Anjuna, the sociocultural and ecological fabric of the village has drastically changed, but many aspects of his experience have carried through the decades. If anything, the spirituality and inner peace that the hippies came to Anjuna with is now Shiva Valley, a large techno haven where music is what you bob your head to and drugs mostly synthetic.
"Goa had a lot going for it, but many Westerners were not interested in local culture. They roared around on motorbikes, ate egg and chips, drank beer."
Ecological impact of rapid development across Anjuna
Goa is the smallest state in India, with a shoreline of only 140 km, but it is abundant in biodiversity, making it one of the richest biodiversity hotspots in the world. That a large number of its shorelines are at further risk of decline will mean grave consequences for the state where everything from the economy to culture depends on natural resources.
The development across Anjuna - in the form of construction - is part of a history of land-grabbing in the state. In 2023, over two lakh square metres belonging to the Communidade of Anjuna were grabbed by a group who forged old Portuguese documents and orchestrated the sales of two properties without the knowledge of the Communidade. In an interview in 2023 between authors Kenneth Bo Nielsen, Heather P. Bedi, and Solano Da Silva, who authored the book, ‘The Great Goa Land Grab’, Da Silva paraphrased a 2006 statement by Dr Oscar Rebellow to contextualise current land politics in the state: "The longer but critical task is to imagine and build an alternative foundational economy in Goa. This would be nurturing, caring and regenerative compared to the current economic system which is premised on the myth of endless growth where people and natural resources (like land) are treated like commodities, and where huge social and ecological problems are externalised."
In 2023, over two lakh square metres belonging to the Communidade of Anjuna were grabbed by a group who forged old Portuguese documents and orchestrated the sales of two properties without the knowledge of the Communidade.
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Anjuna's rocky cliffs are home to tide pools (shallow pools of seawater that form on rocky intertidal shores) that still flourish with organisms such as crabs, snails, shrimp, algae, etc. A new phenomenon has emerged in recent years - tidepool walks, many of which happen in Anjuna. Curated by marine experts, a group of residents, locals and tourists walk along Anjuna's rocky terrain and discover a different world: small creatures inhabiting rocks of laterite, basalt and granite. Aimed at working towards the conservation of Goa's marine ecosystem through the physical mobilisation of people, these walks are often dominated by party go-ers still out at dawn.
Nester Fernandes, a Goan who works with organisations towards marine conservation, including the World Wide Fund (WWF), has been organising tidepool walks across rocky terrains like Anjuna for the past two years. His work involves identifying organisms and tracing the landscape of the area and anthropogenic activities, but most importantly, maintaining a relationship with the Goa Forest Department for anything ecology-related. He frequently consults with them over conservation requirements. “A lot of the organisms situated in rocky terrains have recently come under the Wildlife Protection Act, making them highly protected, like sea anemones and soft corals. They have the same protected status as tigers,” he says. Fernandes’ tide-pooling involves documenting marine life - flora and fauna - and building a community that will involve itself in the same purpose.
“We’re trying to build a repository that people can use either for information, to create conservation guidelines or in policymaking,” he says, asserting that not enough ecological studies have been conducted to understand changes in the shoreline in recent years. This is something his team is working on.
“A lot of the organisms situated in rocky terrains have recently come under the Wildlife Protection Act, making them highly protected, like sea anemones and soft corals. They have the same protected status as tigers,”
Coastal erosion and shore changes
Upon entering the first narrow path at Anjuna Beach that leads to the rocky terrain, where tidepools are scattered and some tourists glimpse the sunset, construction hits you in the face. A large, undeveloped concrete structure - an eyesore compared to the sea - has collected asphalt, brick and garbage; its emptiness serves as a refuge for encroachment. It aligns the area behind breakwaters (tetrapods) that were put to break the tides. This was necessary, a taverna owner says, to avoid erosion. Globally, tetrapods are used to protect coastal communities and eroded coastlines. In India, they are famously stacked across the Worli-Marine Drive belt inMumbai, but removed for construction of the Coastal Road Project. Some are returning. Anjuna's breakwaters can be traced to 2013 when it was found that the shoreline was eroding at a rapid pace. Locals then alleged that over 50m of the coastline had shrunk. Around 20 families were affected by the shore's constant soil erosion. While the positive impact of breakwaters is well documented - Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand have had successful runs with the tetrapod structures - evidence suggests otherwise. "We've noticed some patterns of sand change on the shore but there is nothing conclusive," says Fernandes. Since the mass introduction of breakwaters across Anjuna’s shore, concerns have risen over their potential dangers. While the intent is to protect the structures along the shore from high tides, breakwaters can increase erosion.
Anjuna's rocky cliffs are comparatively untouched and sometimes see minor fishing - mostly two or three men getting a daily catch for their homes or shacks. But fishing activities on the shore have decreased tenfold. "Where is the space to fish?" retorts the Guru bar owner.
"When you build colonies or houses or any structures on the shoreline, where due to increasing temperatures the water level is rising, and build these protective walls as a result, there's going to be less dispersion of the energy of the waves, which will cause the sand to move. We've witnessed this in Karnataka as well. Any permanent structures you build near the sea will have an immediate impact on the shore in the form of erosion,” says Fernandes. According to a study in ScienceDirect, called Environmental Impact of Submerged and Emerged Breakwaters (2022), these structures 'artificially' fix a coastline and compromise its ability to adapt to changing conditions. They also tend to be 'non-adaptive' with their hefty cost and maintenance in a rapidly changing climate.
In a more recent study conducted by the National Centre for Sustainable Coastal Management (NCSCM), wherein more than 41 beaches in Goa were surveyed, Anjuna displayed trails of both erosion and accretion. The latter can be identified almost immediately. It takes a walk deeper into the lanes stacked like dominoes with restaurants to arrive at the shore, where piles of garbage, excreta and soot (possibly from nearby restaurants and shacks) are the first sight. Further down the shore, shacks are packed with people, often extending onto the shore and leaving little room for the beach. The study by NCSCM further found that of all the beaches surveyed at least 21 were at risk of erosion, accretion and in most cases both. What this means, simply put, is that rapid developmental projects across popular shorelines like Anjuna are eating away the land that protects the coast and its people.
"In Goa, we are currently cataloguing our fieldwork. We're going to put it out there so governments or citizens can stop dangerous construction. For example at beaches where turtles nest, no sports activities are allowed. So consistent documentation and cataloguing of organisms can ensure that an area comes under protection Acts and scrutiny," says Fernandes. He adds that the organisms under the Wildlife Protection Act in Anjuna require more monitoring and advocacy since they are 'Schedule I' species. Fernandes and his team also work with the Forest Department to ensure these areas are under their watchful eye.
Conflict with business over coastal regulations
The government too bears the burden of hyper development in Anjuna. In February, the High Court (HC) of Bombay at Goa delivered a 14-page judgement demanding the closure of 175 structures falling under the Anjuna Panchayat, admonishing it for allowing commercial businesses to operate without permission from the Goa Coastal Zone Management Authority (GCZMA) under the Coastal Regulation Zone notification and the Planning Authorities under the Town and Country Planning Act 1974. The HC further found that the Panchayat had not taken into consideration that Anjuna is an eco-sensitive area.
A subsequent bandh (strike) was announced by shack owners, all local, who tend to get snowballed into issues that are directed at settlers. Shacks, compared to the beach clubs, are small, ground-floor structures native to Goa, built much before the arrival of the hippie trail. That 175 illegal structures went unnoticed is alarming, raising concerns over structures across Goa's shorelines.
What happens to a state and its indigenous population when they have to fight to stay on land that is theirs? Since 2013, when locals became aware of sand erosion at Anjuna and demanded that they be protected, other concerns have risen - like noise. Only recently, locals surrounding Little Vagator, mere minutes from Anjuna, complained about the deep impact of fireworks initiated by clubs and hotels, on their wellbeing.
The Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) notification came into being in 1991, meant to protect the coast from commercialisation. According to the National Institute of Oceanography, "Its main purpose was to control, minimise and protect environmental damage to sensitive coastal stretches from unplanned human interference." The CRZ notification prohibited any 'fresh' construction between 200 metres from the coast.
It also regulated the construction between 200-500 metres from the coast. But despite this Goa's beaches have seen an increase in new construction by 20%, according to a 2021 study. Interestingly, only the 'reconstruction' of preexisting structures, belonging to natives, was allowed.
Goa environment minister Nilesh Cabral even admitted to the Hindustan Times in 2021, that there were plenty of CRZ violations in Goa. The recent Anjuna violations came well after the 2021 study when the government was delaying plans for a CZMP (Coastal Zone Management Plan). Anjuna's stacked clubs present a grim reality: public access to a popular beach is largely cut off by the privatisation of a narrow lane leading to the shore. Restaurants that one passes along the way have private access to the beach, but customers enjoy the view and think less about anything else. While Nester Fernandes is positive about citizen action and monitoring by the Goa Forest Department, he asserts that more - much, much more - is needed, in terms of ecological impact studies. Experiences like the tidepool walks are not just fun mornings at the shore, they serve a larger purpose - to be able to identify organisms and document them, especially those not seen before. These reports, when they make their way to authorities or even international journals, allow for swift governmental action. This is a crucial point for Anjuna, right in the midst of conflict over CRZ violations. The result of this phase will determine what happens to this precious shoreline in decades to come.
Bibliography & References
- 21 beaches in Goa face erosion, no accretion on 12: Central data, Times of India, 2023
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/21-beaches-in-goa-face-erosion-no-accretion-on-12-central-data/articleshow/105739853.cms - The Hippie Scene of Anjuna, Goa in 1980
https://www.richardgregory.org.uk/history/goa-1980.htm - Mystery ‘Storeys’ of Anjuna, Times of India, 2023
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/mystery-storeys-of-anjuna/articleshow/97829889.cms# - Once Upon a time in Anjuna, Times of India, 2015
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/once-upon-a-time-in-anjuna/articleshow/49121042.cms - Sun, Sand and small wonders of Goa
https://www.gomantaktimes.com/my-goa/things-to-do/sun-sand-and-small-wonders-of-goa - National Assessment of Shoreline Changes Along Indian Coast, National Centre for Coastal Research, 2018
- Now, Anjuna beach given tetrapod protection, Times of India, 2013
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/now-anjuna-beach-given-tetrapod-protection/articleshow/20546631.cms - Environmental impact of submerged and emerged breakwaters, ScienceDirect, 2022
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405844022039147 - Anjuna bandh indicates depths to which Goa has descended, Gomantak Times, 2024
https://www.gomantaktimes.com/opinion/anjuna-bandh-indicates-depths-to-which-goa-has-descended - ‘Despite CRZ notification, built-up area along Goa’s coast grows manifold’: Study, Hindustan Times, 2021
https://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/others/despite-crz-notification-built-up-area-along-goa-s-coast-grows-manifold-study-101631936971812.html - Great land grab at Anjuna Comunidade, Herald Goa, 2023
https://www.heraldgoa.in/Goa/Great-land-grab-at-Anjuna-Comunidade-/213327#google_vignette - The Saga of Goa’s Land, Navhind Times, 2023
https://www.navhindtimes.in/2023/03/12/magazines/panorama/the-saga-of-goas-land/
