The Mayor of Panaji and 15 elected members of the Corporation of the City of Panaji (CCP) have taken the outline development plan for the city to court. They have gone to court in their individual capacity because the commissioner refused to file the case, which we think is a good enough reason for his transfer. The reasoning is simple: if the commissioner can call the shots what is the point in having elected representatives? In this case, it appears, the commissioner put the interests of the North Goa Planning and Development Authority ahead of the CCP and the city. In the future there must be a system where the post of commissioner is filled by an incumbent who is acceptable to the CCP. The practice of government’s using the commissioner to control the CCP must be stopped and power transferred to the corporation.
The crux of the petition filed before the High Court of Bombay at Goa is that the CCP was not consulted at the time of preparation of the ODP, which seeks to make drastic changes within the city. Of the many new suggestions and ideas incorporated into the ODP, the one that stands out is increase of FAR to 300 for reconstruction of old buildings. This is a major change in planning because it means that Panaji, which has run out of space, is going to grow upwards. The petitioners have charged that this measure was hastily pushed through to gain the support of voters for the Assembly elections which were held on February 4. This may or may not be true, but a question mark hangs over whether the CCP was consulted or not.
The petition contains an exchange of letters between the CCP and the NGPDA, with the former claiming that it was not concluded and the latter countering it. The crucial issue here is what should be the nature of consultation? Should the CCP be treated as an individual for the purpose of submitting objections or suggestions? Or should the ODP be sent to the CCP for its final approval? These questions are now before the high court.
It has been a tradition of successive State governments to bulldoze panchayats and municipalities. The only change came when former chief minister Digambar Kamat chose to adopt the bottom-top system of planning and involved all panchayats in the formulation of the regional plan. A similar system should have been adopted for the purpose of preparing ODPs with ward-level consultation. Unfortunately, under the existing system, the planning and development authorities have been placed above elected bodies, which is an anti-democratic practice. One understands that planning of cities ought to be taken up by experts who are qualified for the purpose. However, final approval must lie with the people who are going to be impacted by changes in the ODP. This principle has been violated by successive governments in cities. The petition filed by the Mayor and 15 corporators is therefore crucial to deciding the relationship between the people, corporators and NGPDA and asserts their right to govern the city.
