MAPUSA
The Assagao villagers at Sunday’s gram sabha expressed outrage over what they termed as an attempt to decimate the village’s hills and forest cover through the correction of land classification from natural cover to settlement by the Town and Country Planning (TCP) department.
Accusing the government of bowing to builder pressure, residents warned that such actions were endangering the ecological balance of Assagao – one of the few remaining green villages in North Goa.
Local resident Ranjit Parsekar came down heavily on the government, alleging that hills surveyed under No 69/1 and 101/1, covering nearly 3 lakh square metres, were being reclassified under the guise of “correction,” calling it a case of “rampant corruption.”
He demanded that no forest-related surveys or changes be conducted in the village without the knowledge of the Biodiversity Committee and the panchayat.
“Once our hills are gone, our green cover will vanish, wells will get polluted, houses will be flooded and the very fabric of our village will be destroyed,” he warned.
Parsekar urged the panchayat to pass a resolution banning construction in sloping and ecologically sensitive areas.
Other villagers echoed similar sentiments, urging the panchayat to act in defence of the village’s environment.
Sarpanch Hanumant Naik assured residents that he would convey their concerns to the TCP department and ensure that no further activity was carried out under the controversial Section of the TCP Act, which is currently under the Supreme Court’s scrutiny. He clarified that any construction under the Act was at the builder’s own risk.
A controversy also erupted over the erroneous recording of gram sabha minutes from May, where it was wrongly noted that a resident had moved a resolution to widen roads. The resident, Desmond Alvares, denied having done so. The sarpanch rectified the error and affirmed that the previously agreed resolution to maintain status quo on roads would prevail.
Villagers also raised concerns over potholed and sinking roads, questioning the quality of recent hotmixing work.
Naik informed the gathering that potholes would be patched temporarily, but the contractor would be asked to restore the sunken road at his own cost. Additionally, residents questioned the delay in the commissioning of the water treatment plant, which was initially slated for February this year.
The sarpanch expressed hope that it would be operational before the year ends.
