the goan I network
VALPOI
Residents of Vante-Bhironda have strongly objected to any private project on farmland and appealed to the Bhironda panchayat not to approve such projects in the village.
The issue dominated a special Gram Sabha of Bhironda at the temple premises in Vante, as residents feared that private projects would destroy agriculture in the area.
Locals were informed that a proposal had been submitted by a private party to the Bhironda panchayat and the proposal was later discussed at a meeting of the panchayat body.
During the meeting, many panch members insisted that a special Gram Sabha should be convened to discuss the proposal and to seek advice from residents. As a result, a special Gram Sabha was organised in the temple premises at Vante-Bhironda and details of the proposal were presented at the Gram Sabha.
A number of residents then raised objections to the proposal after pointing out that Bhironda village has a strong tradition of agriculture which has been practised for hundreds of years.
Claiming that agriculture has been the main source of livelihood for people in the area for generations, the locals feared that if a private project is set up by a company, agricultural activity would be under threat as the commercial project would involve acquisition of huge amounts of land. They demanded that the Bhironda panchayat should not approve the project at any stage.
The residents also feared that if the details of the proposed project are not clear, it would cause further confusion and anger among people.
Bhironda Sarpanch Uday Singh Rane assured the Gram Sabha that if the residents were opposed to the project, the panchayat would not go ahead with the proposal and he also promised that the interests of the residents would be protected.
Others present at the Gram Sabha included panch members Nitin Shivdekar, Bindia Gawde, Sada Gavkar and Panchayat Secretary Yashwant Naik.
