PANAJI
The High Court of Bombay at Goa on Wednesday directed the Town and Country Planning Department and the Assagao village panchayat to inspect structures around the Dossoxir Spring in Assagao and submit a report on their legality.
The Bench passed the direction while hearing a PIL seeking protection of the natural spring, which the petitioner alleged is being polluted by illegal constructions in its command area. The matter has been posted for September 16.
The PIL, filed by Desmond Alvares, contended that the spring is a source of potable water for residents in the neighbourhood and an important ecological asset supporting local biodiversity.
It stated that the spring is notified as a command area of the Tillari irrigation project, where no construction can be undertaken without an NOC from the Command Area Development Board of the project.
The petition further pointed to a 1988 representation by members of the Assagao comunidade to its then president, seeking preservation of the spring and surrounding land for public utility. The representation had warned that future construction could create a nuisance and eventually threaten the spring.
