Builders push for taller towers as housing societies and government offices line up for reconstruction
PANAJI
The capital city of Goa, over a century and three quarters old, is bracing for a massive transformation. Iconic buildings -- government and private -- are on their way to being razed and in their place will rise towers of 10, 12, or even 14 storeys.
Planning authorities, including the Town and Country Planning Department and the North Goa Planning and Development Authority (NGPDA), are aligned with the construction and real estate lobby, which is aggressively pursuing such a course.
A senior TCP official admitted rules already allow additional Floor Area Ratios (FARs) up to 300 per cent, for a fee. Yet, the Corporation of the City of Panaji (CCP) -- the body that licenses construction -- remains in the dark. Locked in an election cycle, with polling on March 11 to elect 30 councillors, the CCP has not touched the issue.
Election campaigns of the two panels of candidates contesting for power in the CCP -- the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-backed Monserrates-led panel and the combined Opposition’s ‘Ami Panjekar’ -- are both silent. Meanwhile, redevelopment talks are racing ahead.
Housing societies eye redevelopment
At least half a dozen housing societies owning two- to four-storeyed complexes are negotiating with builders.
Kundaikar Nagar, one of Panaji’s earliest apartment blocks and a landmark near the Mahalaxmi Temple, is likely to be the first to fall.
Sources confirmed the society has concluded talks with a top Goan construction firm and the parties are set to sign on the dotted line. Four other societies in the same locality are also in talks with builders.
In Miramar, redevelopment plans for Palm Grove near the Goa International Hotel have been approved. Work will begin once permissions are secured from the NGPDA and CCP, government sources said.
Govt buildings face demolition
Several government and public buildings are also on the chopping block. The iconic Junta House awaits demolition, delayed only because the current occupants housed there are still searching for new spaces elsewhere. The FCI godown next door to Junta House and the PWD garage opposite the sprawling campus of Don Bosco are also slated for replacement. In fact, the State government has already contracted the Delhi-based public sector company NBCC (India) Ltd to execute the demolitions and rebuild.
The push stems from changes made in 2023 and piloted by TCP Minister Vishwajit Rane. The amendments to the Goa (Regulation of Land Development and Building Construction) Act eased height restrictions and allowed higher FARs. Builders say redevelopment now offers higher returns and makes better economic sense than fresh projects on open plots of land in the city, which are scarce or virtually non-existent.
Recent examples prove the trend. Adarsh Colony in Tonca-Caranzalem was redeveloped by real estate firm Milrock. La Campal Housing Society was rebuilt by Kamat Constructions. In neighbouring Taleigao, Rajdeep Builders has completed redevelopment of a building near the Priority Motors showroom. Pradeep Housing Society is currently under reconstruction.
Panaji is at a crossroads, with its heritage character at risk of being replaced by a jungle of concrete towers. Yet, in the run-up to the CCP polls, the issue finds no resonance. Candidates remain silent and voters uninformed even as the capital city’s built-up space hangs in the balance.
