PANAJI
The Bombay High Court at Goa on Wednesday directed the cessation of commercial activities in the 61 allegedly illegal structures built at Girkar Vaddo, Arambol that are now in the limelight after a four-storey hotel was built without any permissions right beside a creek in violation of norms.
“The HC has directed that all commercial activities in 61 structures “ out of which some are commercial and some are residential “ as far as commercial structures are concerned the court has ordered that these structures should immediately stop all activities and these structures should be sealed. As far as residential structures are concerned there is no order passed by the HC,” Advocate General Devidas Pangam said.
“There was a report submitted by the CRZ authority as well as by the panchayat showing some 61 structures to be illegal in that particular ward and upon looking at that report the court has passed this order. As far as the remaining structures are concerned the court has granted 15-day time to complete the inspection and submit a further report,” he added.
The Bombay High Court at Goa in mid-October had ordered the sealing of the four-storeyed hotel that was built and operating without any permissions whatsoever from any authorities within the Coastal Regulation No Development Zone.
Hearing a petition filed by one Ravi Harmalkar the High Court lamented that it was “completely shocked that a structure of this magnitude could come up in a highly eco-sensitive No Development Zone without obtaining permissions from any of the Authorities under any of the several legislations and regulations which would normally apply to these types of constructions assuming that such a construction was permissible in a NDZ.”
Since then the village panchayat has submitted before the High Court that there could be as many as 179 structures in one vaddo that are illegal.
