PANAJI
Work on the proposed Mirabag bhandara project will be halted for at least two to four months, WRD Minister Subhash Shirodkar said on Monday, adding that a final decision will be taken after discussions with Chief Minister Pramod Sawant.
Shirodkar said the pause would coincide with the upcoming monsoon season and indicated that public sentiment would be taken into account before any further steps are taken.
“If people are happy with the halt, I am also happy. A final decision will be taken after discussing the matter with the Chief Minister,” he said.
Residents opposing the project have been staging protests for the past 31 days, demanding that the government scrap the proposed bhandara. The opposition intensified on Saturday after the Water Resources Department made a presentation on the project at a public meeting in Sanvordem.
Hundreds of villagers from Sanguem, Curchorem, and Sanvordem attended and raised strong objections, demanding written minutes of the meeting and a written assurance from the government within two days that the project would be cancelled, failing which they warned of intensifying their agitation.
