Most of the 500-odd hotels and restaurants in the state, particularly those near the coastal areas, have been dumping accumulated waste in bins near their establishments. But the load was too much for the government's sanitation department. As a result, most of the trash stayed where it was.

``Between October and February when the tourist season is at its peak, garbage accumulates rapidly,'' says K Dwarkanath Rao, president, Travel and Tourism Association of Goa (TTAG). The beaches of South Goa, which take the bulk of tourists to the state, are often inundated with garbage. ``The conservation department is helpless against the problem,'' says Rao.

So TTAG has teamed up with several hotelliers' organisations to identify private parties who will pick up their trash for them. ``We have advised hotel and restaurant owners not todump the waste but wait for the garbage disposal van to come to their door,'' says Rao.

The body has also identified a Bangalore-based non-government organisation which will help them set up vermiculture bins to compost garbage. ``However we must first educate people about the need to separate organic waste from inorganic material,'' says Rao.

He however admitted that TTAG's primary objective was to act as a facilitator between the state government and the garbage collector. ``The responsibility of finally disposing of the garbage rests with the government,'' says Rao.

According to TTAG vice-president Olio Alvares, who owns Mabai Hotels in Margao, the clean-up operation will need an investment of Rs one crore. Much of the funding, he hopes, will be raised from international agencies like the World Bank. The state government is also likely to pitch in with land to dump the waste.