Councillor petitions CM to protect coastal houses

Canacona Councillor Shubham Komarpant hands over a memorandum to Chief Minister Pramod Sawant at his residence in Sankhali on Saturday.

CANACONA   

Canacona Councillor Shubham Komarpant has petitioned CM Pramod Sawant to bring about the necessary legislation to protect and legalise the houses of Goans along the coast in Canacona.   

While handing over a memorandum to Sawant at his residence in Sankhali on Saturday morning, Komarpant requested the chief minister to grant these locals rightful ownership of the land.   

“Local Goan families have inhabited and safeguarded these lands, performing their traditional duties of protecting their coastline, preserving nature and upholding cultural practices. Unfortunately, with the rapid rise in land prices, the landlords neither reside in nor know the exact extent of their rightful ancestral lands. They have begun asserting their claims and selling these lands to builders, resorts and investors from outside Goa and even abroad,” said Komarpant.   

“In this process, eviction notices are being served to locals, compelling them to vacate their homes and thereby demolish their ancestral dwellings. This, therefore, has been a grave injustice to the community who have been custodians of these lands for generations.”   

“The houses and livelihoods of these communities are not merely physical; they embody Goa’s culture, traditions, heritage and values. The locals maintain centuries-old practices tied to their guardian deities, community shrines, rituals and seasonal ceremonies such as Rakhne, Garvai, Zagor, Shigmyachi Vatt, Parbho and others. These rituals are not only vital to their cultural identity but also serve as spiritual and communal safeguards for the coastline.”   

Komarpant feared that builders, resorts and the land-grabbing mafia from outside the state would buy these lands without the knowledge of locals and would show no concern for their welfare.   

According to Komarpant, the chief minister assured him that necessary steps would be taken to ensure the protection of the rights of Goenkars.