MARGAO
Excavation of mud from the base of Benaulim Monte for road widening works ahead of the BRICS summit triggered an uproar in the village on Wednesday, with the flying squad directing the police to attach the vehicles and machinery deployed for the excavation work. Tension rent the air as Parish Priest, Fr Lucio Dias, Benaulim MLA Caitu Silva and the local residents demanded a stop to the excavation on grounds that mud excavation at the base of the Benaulim Monte will result in soil erosion and adversely affect the 450-year-old heritage Chapel atop the Hillock.
Heated arguments ensued between Benaulim MLA Caitu Silva, local residents and the property owner Sheikh Izaj as the MLA and the residents, besides the Parish Priest of St John the Baptist Church Fr Dias, demanded that the owner and contractor produce the permissions. The owner maintained that he will produce the documents tomorrow.
As the heated discussions, Caitu told the police and the flying squad to attach the machinery and the vehicles engaged for the excavation. An official of the flying squad informed that the owner could not produce any documents pertaining to the mud excavation, adding that he would submit a detailed report on the episode to the Deputy Collector Ajit Panchwadkar for further action.
Fr Lucio Dias later told the media that the local residents are apprehensive that excavation of mud will affect the hillock and the heritage chapel. “If the excavation does not stop, the heritage chapel will come down. We have to preserve the 450-year-old monument,” Fr Dias said.
The Benaulim MLA pointed out that he has told the police to seize the machinery and vehicles since the owner or the contractor could not produce permission from the authorities for the excavation.
Co-owner Sheikh Ijjaz later told the media that the property in question belongs to his family and that he had allowed the contractor to take away the mud for the road widening works because of the BRICS summit. “We have given the mud free to the contractor. It was the responsibility of the contractor to comply with the legal formalities. “This is my ancestral property. The Monte Hill is away from the site. Assuming that the mud excavation will affect the hillock, is the owner supposed to leave the property or are they supposed to take measures to protect the hill,” he demanded to know.
