PANAJI
The State government rejected the demand for blanket regularisation of dwelling structures in government and comunidade-owned land without first conducting a survey as to the number or hold dialogue with Components of the Comunidades.
Revenue Minister Jennifer Monserrate said, the issue needed to be deeply examined including conducting a detailed study including enumerating the number of structures that fall in this category.
She added that Deputy Collectors have already been issued instructions to begin this exercise of mapping unauthorized structures in government land.
The demand was raised through a private member's resolution by Aldona MLA, Glenn Souza Ticlo who however withdrew it after Monserrate assured that a proper proposal will be taken up in the future by encompassing all aspects and intricacies of the move to legalise such structures.
Monserrate also said that a convention of Comunidade Components from across Goa is slated to be held on March 7 which she would attend and volunteered to place the MLAs' sentiments related to regularising unauthorized structures there and also held out an invitation to some members, including Opposition Leader Digambar Kamat to join her at that convention.
Earlier, several members joined in the discussion on Ticlo's resolution and were commonly of the view that some solution which will lead to regularizing these dwelling structures is found.
Porvorim MLA Rohan Khaunte, who himself was Revenue Minister and was seized of the issue, however raised a red flag over the danger of such a move encouraging more illegalities.
In fact Khaunte cited several examples of recent cases of encroachments in the Comunidade of Serula which is in the jurisdiction of his Porvorim constituency, and demanded that the Revenue department and the government must also at the same time take punitive action in such cases.
He accused the ruling BJP of instead admitting perpetrators of such encroachers into their fold and subsequently patronising their illegalities.
Navelim MLA Luizinho Faleiro urged the government to ensure that whenever it comes up with a proposal, it takes care that no message goes across to the general public that you can do whatever you want, encroach and then the structure will be regularized.
