MARGAO
Government’s decision to notify the Durga bandh in Chinchinim village as a wetland has come in for strong opposition at the Village Development Committee on Thursday, with members resolving to call on the Wetland Authority of Goa and to knock the doors of Judiciary for the de-notification of the wetland.
The issue took the centrestage at a joint meeting of the VDC, Bio-diversity Management Committee and the panchayat body chaired by Sarpanch Valentino Barretto as members expressed concern over the notification of the Durga bandh as wetland without taking the stakeholders into confidence.
Sarpanch Valentino explained the members that the Durga bandh is not a wetland but a bandh, adding that nowhere it has been mentioned that Durga is a lake. “What we come across at Durga is a bandh and fields. The government has bulldozed its way with notifying the area as a wetland. The people had in the past lodged their objections, but their pleas were overruled and the government has bulldozed its way by declaring Durga bandh as a wetland on March 31,” the sarpanch said.
Participants wondered how the Wetland Authority of Goa and the government can declare Durga as a wetland without taking the stakeholders, including the owners and tenants, besides the local body into confidence.
Unveiling the road map to oppose the notification, the meeting decided to hold deliberations and to approach the authority and knock the doors of the Judiciary for justice.
The participants further pointed out that one can come across fallow agricultural lands everywhere, but the government has targeted Durga by declaring it as a wetland.
Chinchinim panchayat member representing Durga ward, Gerson Gomes said the VDC meeting has taken a decision to take the authority to the court.
He later told the media that the actual pond area of water is approximately 2000 sq metre, besides two channels of water admeasuring 900 metres, adding that the rest area comprises of paddy fields. He further pointed out that 50 metres buffer zone is not feasible for the people saying the ward is like an island surrounded by fields, with 200 metres breadth and a length of half a kilometre. “Actually, all the houses are falling in the buffer zone. The actual line is faulty drawn over dry land. In fact the entire process carried out by the Authority is faulty. They just used Google image and actual ground survey was not done,” he said.
Saying he was the first one to bring to the notice of the villagers and the panchayat two years back, Gerson said the notification of the Durga wetland is a total injustice on the village.
