Assembly Session | Rs 7 cr spent on scrapped Unity Mall site

MAPUSA
Tourism Minister Rohan Khaunte on Tuesday informed the Goa Legislative Assembly that the government has officially cancelled the proposed Unity Mall project at Chimbel and is currently searching for an alternative site to execute the project.
Khaunte said that once the new location is finalised, the State Cabinet will approve the site before the project is taken forward. He also clarified that about Rs 7 crore has been spent on construction at the Chimbel site over the past five months.
“The contractor has also claimed that steel worth around Rs 11 crore has already been procured for the project, for which the government has not yet made any payment,” Khaunte told the House.
He further informed that once a new site is identified, all construction materials presently at the Chimbel site will be shifted to the new location.
The minister’s statement came amid a heated exchange between the treasury benches and the opposition, with the latter questioning the government over the cancellation of the project and the expenditure incurred so far.
Venzy Viegas, AAP MLA from Benaulim, demanded that the government place before the House a formal Cabinet decision cancelling the project instead of merely issuing what he described as a “paper order.” He also sought details of the total expenditure incurred on the project.
Leader of Opposition Yuri Alemao also targeted the government over discrepancies in the expenditure figures. While Chief Minister Pramod Sawant stated in the House that around Rs 25 crore had been spent on the project, the written reply provided by the government put the figure at Rs 21 crore.
Pointing to the mismatch, Alemao demanded clarification and said the government must maintain transparency regarding public expenditure.
He further argued that although the State government claims the Unity Mall is a Central government initiative, it is actually a grant-based scheme, making it necessary for the government to disclose all details related to the project.
Responding to the criticism, Khaunte accused the opposition of politicising the issue. He said the project had earlier faced objections from local residents on the grounds that the proposed site fell within a catchment area.
However, the minister said a report by a hydrologist had concluded that the project site is located about 386 metres outside the concerned catchment zone.
Khaunte added that the government decided to cancel the project at Chimbel while respecting the sentiments of the local community and will proceed with the project once a suitable alternative site is identified.