MARGAO
Around this time five years ago, social and political activists”alongside NGOs like Goyant Kollso Naka and Goencho Ekvott”were engaged in a determined mission: to mobilise Goans to gather at the Chandor railway crossing on the night of November 1, 2020.
For, the movement against coal had reached a decisive phase. Rail Vikas Nigam Ltd (RVNL) had pushed ahead with plans to lay a second railway track at the crossings of Chandor, Nessai, and Davorlim, despite widespread public opposition. These villages in Salcete had become the epicentre of the State’s anti-coal and anti-double tracking agitation.
Only a small stretch of the double track remained to be laid”to connect the sections already completed along the Chandor“Nessai“Davorlim corridor of the South Western Railway line. To facilitate this, the South Goa Collector, Ajit Roy, issued an order on October 26, 2020, temporarily closing the Chandor level crossing road between Guirdolim Junction and Chandor Church on November 2, from midnight to 5 am, to allow RVNL to complete the work.
The trigger: Nessai track laying work
The “Chalo Chandor” call was given, on the night of October 28, 2020, when RVNL, under heavy police protection, completed the double tracking at the Nessai railway crossing in Sao Jose de Areal village. Activists from Goyant Kollso Naka, led by convenor Antonio D’Silva and co-convenor Abhijit Prabhudesai, rushed to the Nessai railway gate to confront railway officials.
They questioned whether the work had the required permissions from the local panchayat, citing provisions of the Goa Panchayat Raj Act. The railway officials dismissed these objections, asserting that the work was being carried out under the Railway Act, which exempted them from local body permissions. Despite the activists’ resistance, RVNL completed the Nessai double tracking before dawn on October 28.
The Chandor showdown
With the Railways pressing forward at Nessai, activists prepared for a decisive showdown at Chandor, where the next round of work was scheduled for November 2, 2020. NGOs and volunteers spread across Goa, urged citizens to gather in solidarity for the November 1 protest.
Thousands of Goans responded. From all corners of the State, people converged at Chandor, demanding a complete halt to all coal-related projects, including double tracking. Late that night, social activists, citizens, political leaders, and Opposition MLAs gathered near Chandor Church and marched to the railway crossing in a candlelight procession”a powerful show of unity and resistance.
Sensing the rising public pressure, RVNL eventually decided to postpone the Chandor double tracking work, marking a symbolic victory for the anti-coal and anti-double tracking movement. A few days later, facing similar opposition, RVNL also postponed the Davorlim track laying scheduled for November 9, as social activists once again gathered in large numbers to protest.
