MARGAO
Has the Goa Coastal Zone Management Authority (GCZMA) put in place an effective mechanism to advance the rule of law to rein in the Coastal Zone Regulation (CRZ) violations? Whether any inventory has been prepared in respect of the structures that have come up in violation of CRZ based on an independent annual survey? And, whether the inventory has been updated periodically to avoid selective action against the CRZ violations?
Or, is it simply that the GCZMA is working on the basis of complaints against illegal structures and that large number of illegal structures continue to exist inspite of the High Court directions issued in 2007?
Well, the Principal Bench of the National Green Tribunal, New Delhi had made these observations and issued directions to the GCZMA, while upholding the GCZMA demolition order of a restaurant and rejecting an appeal petition of a Colva-based restaurant owner in June 2021.
Exactly three years down the line, NGT’s observations and directions may come back to haunt the GCZMA as well as the activists waging a sustained battle to protect the coast from encroachments with structures in violation of the CRZ norms.
When The Goan called up GCZMA Member Secretary Johnson Fernandes to shed light on the NGT’s 2021 order asking the coastal management authority to set up a mechanism to deal with the rising number of CRZ violations, the senior official feigned ignorance about the NGT order. In fact, he pointed out that he has assumed office of the GCZMA only last year, adding “May be the NGT has issued the order when some other official was presiding over the Authority”.
Social activist Judith Almeida, however, was not ready to buy the argument advanced by the GCZMA Member Secretary. “May be the incumbent GCZMA had assumed office only last year, while the NGT had passed the order in June 2021. But, I would like to point out that the NGT Principal bench had made a pointed remark that the observations made in the order is conveyed to the GCZMA by sending a copy of the order by mail. This only goes to show that the NGT did not simply make the observations, but wanted the GCZMA to put a mechanism in place to rein in the CRZ violations and violators”, Judith said.
She added: “An inventory of the CRZ structures based on an independent annual survey as observed by the NGT would have maintained a check on the mushrooming CRZ structures and violations. If the GCZMA member secretary says he is not aware of the NGT order dated June 28, 2021, I will hand over a copy of the order to the GCZMA”.
The NGT’s observations assumed significance and comes against the backdrop of the fact that action, whenever it is taken, is initiated only when a complaint is lodged with the GCZMA.
“We may add that GCZMA appears to be working only on the basis of complaints against illegal structures and large number of illegal structures continue to exist inspite of directions of the High Court”, the NGT Principal Bench had observed.
Judith questioned: “Will the GCZMA and other government authorities remain silent spectators to the CRZ violations if no complaint is filed by the citizens? This is exactly the reason why the NGT had mooted an effective monitoring mechanism to advance the rule of law”.
