The controversial Marina project at Nauxim takes yet another turn after the Union Ministry for Environment and Forests and Climate Change (MOEFF&CC) mentioned that the project does not require an Environmental Clearance (EC) but would require all other statutory permissions.
The development will resurrect a project that was believed to have been given a burial last year after the State government, which faced a barrage of criticism from citizens, announced the Marina project was being dropped.
The project, approved by the Investment Promotion Board in 2015, has been facing stiff opposition from locals, activists and environmentalists ever since then. The first signs of the project making a comeback were visible when the Mormugao Port Authority (MPA) withdrew a show cause notice to Kargwal Constructions Pvt Ltd almost a year after announcing that it was moving to terminate the lease agreement.
It now comes to light that the Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC) meeting held on October 5 resolved that the project does not come under the Environmental Impact Assessment notification 2006 as amended and does not require an EC. The question is why such a crucial decision was delayed. If there is an exemption to the project as per the law, it could have been conveyed through proper channels much earlier. It appears suspicious, the way it has unfolded, given the controversial background.
There is skepticism over the government’s intentions because Chief Minister Pramod Sawant told the media in January 2021 that the project was being dropped, while Advocate General Devidas Pangam told the High Court that he was unaware of any such decision.
The current development means that there would be no public hearings, and the project proponents would have a major roadblock cleared because the entire focus was on public hearings where aggrieved villagers would get an opportunity to air their concerns and justify their opposition. Now, none of that would take place, and Kargwal could make their next move.
The entire focus now shifts on the State government and whether it will play ball with the project proponents despite the concerns raised by all and sundry. If we may recall, Environment Minister Nilesh Cabral has been skirting controversy by pushing the responsibility on the Centre. The State government must clarify its position immediately. We ask this because an impression was created that the project was dropped out of concern for Goa’s environment. When the CM spoke in 2021, he said, “let’s drop the marina and focus on other developmental projects”.
The Nauxim project is spread across one lakh sq mts with land area admeasuring 50,000 sq mts. The marina is proposed to accommodate 239 boats on the northern bank of Mormugao Bay. There is no denying that the project will bring about a large-scale change in the area, impacting the marine ecology and environment.
There has been a stoic silence from the Chief Minister and the environment minister so far, while there has been a flood of reactions from cross sections of people, including political leaders, activists, greens and locals. It appears that the bugle has been sounded to what would be yet another battle to save Goa’s natural assets.
