Ever since Western hippies first arrived in Goa in the 1960s it has been redolent of psychedelic drugs, full-Moon parties and free love.

Now Indian local authorities, fed up with backpackers and ravers, are trying to revamp the former Portuguese enclave by developing a gambling industry that they hope could one day rival Macau’s.

The latest move is to host India’s first professional poker tournament, the Asian Poker Classic, at a five-star hotel, with a jackpot of $1 million.

The event, which ends tomorrow, is a big step in a country where gambling is illegal apart from on horse-racing (which is deemed to involve skill), as opposed to cricket, considered a game of chance, in tourism-dependent Goa. Its gambling industry currently consists of the privately-run Casino Goa, which operates on a boat cruising along the Mandovi River, and a handful of slot machines in hotels. But five more offshore casinos have been given licences and five are under discussion, according to Goa tourism officials.

“This is a good way to promote tourism,” said Ernest Dias, the vice-president of Goa’s Travel and Tourism Association. “The whole hippy image is changing: the quality of people coming to Goa is improving.” Last year local authorities banned music on outdoor loudspeakers after 10pm, which put a stop to allnight beach parties.

Local officials say that the changes are intended to attract older, higher-spending tourists to Goa, which accounts for a growing slice of India’s $6 billion tourism industry.

Of the four million tourists who visited India between 2005 and 2006, 400,000 visited Goa. The number is expected to rise by 20 per cent this year due in part to an influx of Chinese and Russian tourists, who are often keen gamblers.

Gambling industry insiders hope that this may persuade the Government to ease restrictions on betting in Goa, and eventually elsewhere in India. They argue that many Indians already gamble illegally, especially on cricket, or travel to casinos in Nepal and Sri Lanka.

The poker tournament’s sponsor is Maharajahclub.com, a gambling site that offers baccarat, blackjack, craps and roulette among other games. It also runs a site designed for Indians called Maharajahclub. net, which teaches people to play poker and other games, using virtual money.

The Asian Poker Classic’s organisers insisted that the tournament did not technically involve betting, and denied that their aim was to encourage Indians to gamble. “It’s an investment in the long-term development of the game,” said Imran Hassan, director of operations for the Asian Poker Classic. “Plus it’s great exposure for Goa.”

The tournament has provoked controversy nonetheless. “We don’t want Goa to be developed towards gambling,” said Manohar Parriker, the former Chief Minister of Goa. “With gambling come other vices like drinking, prostitution, money laundering and drug money,” he said. “Foreign tourists come to Goa for the peace and beauty of the place, not for casinos and cards.”

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