PERNEM
The border issue between the Pernem Municipal Council (PMC) and Tuem Panchayat has erupted yet again, with the PMC resolving to send a notice to those constructions without municipal permission in the disputed land at Murmuse.
A resolution threatening to initiate legal action against structures in Murmuse area was passed in the previous PMC meeting and was confirmed at a meeting on Friday.
Incidentally, the Tuem panchayat at its last Gram Sabha resolved not to part with Murmuse and has refused to hand over any land to the PMC.
At a meeting chaired by PMC Chairperson Usha Nagvekar, the council endorsed its earlier resolution to include its border up to Murmuse hospital and to issue notices to those engaged in constructions without PMC permission.
In another resolution, the PMC decided to allot house numbers to illegal constructions built before February 28, 2014, to increase revenue of the PMC.
When Councillor Upendra Deshprabhu sought to know how structures could be considered legal and illegal, the municipal engineer clarified that those construction with electricity connection would be considered as legal.
About 200 people in Murmuse, one small part of Pernem taluka, find themselves in a peculiar situation, as they are neither from Pernem town nor from Tuem village.
An area of about 2 lakh sq mtr bordering the Pernem town and Tuem village has been virtually no-man's land, with both Pernem Municipal Council (PMC) and Tuem panchayat locked in a 25-yr-old dispute over ownership of Murmuse.
The lack of clarity and surging land prices have prompted people to build houses at rapid pace and an estimated 100 houses have already sprung up in the area.
Incidentally, while the older structures in the area claim to be part of PMC jurisdiction, the newer households vote for the Tuem panchayat.
