PANAJI
The Government of Goa has tabled the Goa Highways (Amendment) Bill, 2017 with an aim to empower it to denotify State highways that run through the municipal areas and classify them as urban roads.
The Bill, which was promised by the Chief Minister while replying to the discussion on demands for grants to the Excise department offers a provision that no road within the limits of the City of Panaji Corporation or a Municipal council up to the distance terminating to the National Highway shall be declared as a State Highway.
Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar on Tuesday had offered to amend the law governing State highways in a bid to exclude the roads within the towns as State highways. He assured that the law would be brought in this session of the Assembly.
"The State Highways Act is being amended that if the goes through the town, it will not be State highway. The State highway will end at the start of the town and restart as it exits the town. It was national recommendation that was not followed up on. That will solve the problem," Parrikar said adding that it would offer relief to towns like Curchorem, Sanguem and even Ponda since the national highway bypasses the town in that city.
There were demands from several legislators to provide relief especially from Carlos Almeida who rued the fact that the entire stretch of highway from Cortalim to Sada had become a dry zone and could be given relief on the lines that Punjab has done for itself.
Among other Bills, the State government has also tabled the Goa Information Technology Development (Amendment) Bill, 2017 and the Goa Preservation of Trees (Amendment) Bill, 2017 which were passed by the cabinet earlier this week.
