PANAJI
A group of concerned Taleigao citizens have raised objection to errors and alleged manipulation in the depiction of land use in the ‘land use map plan’ and land use register recently prepared by the North Goa Planning and Development Authority (NGPDA).
The group called on the member secretary of NGPDA and the technical consultant who aided the authority in the exercise and pointed out that the Land Use Map and Land Use Registers have not been prepared as per the guidelines and that there were massive incongruencies with the reality on the ground.
Activist and AAP leader Cecille Rodrigues, who addressed the media along with other citizens on Friday alleged that the land use map and register exposes corruption, nepotism and violation of law by the NGPDA and the agency TurboSketch, who was the consultant.
The group, which also included professionals in the field, raised objections to various other omissions and commissions in the land use map and register.
Critical information on natural resources, wetlands, hills, tree cover, paddy fields, orchard land and such other is missing, they alleged, adding that the map and register also show roads that are proposed in the future running through vast expanses of paddy fields.
“This plan should contain only information which is existing on the ground,” they said, and expressed fear that such land use maps of all villages may be faulty and manipulated like the Taleigao one as the same agency has prepared them across Goa.
