MARGAO
The fears over the years that the ancestral house of the great Goan nationalist Dr Francisco Luis Gomes would crumble for want of upkeep and maintenance have come true.
A portion of the ancestral house at Colmorod-Navelim in the limits of Margao Municipal Council collapsed early Monday morning.
Successive governments, including the Congress and BJP governments, had paid lip service to the long-pending demand of citizens and freedom fighters to restore the ancestral house of Dr Gomes into a museum, on the plea that the ancestral house is in possession of a private owner and the house is in litigation.
A year ago, a small portion of the wall had collapsed, inviting the attention of the powers that be and the authorities, including the Disaster Management Cell, but in vain.
A few years ago, locals led by Nevin Gomes were instrumental in naming the Colmorod road after Dr Francisco Luis Gomes. Nevin told the media on Monday that the residents had put forth a proposal to the governments in the past to restore the ancestral house into a museum but in vain. “We had even approached house owner Nitin Naik to explore the possibility of the house being converted into a museum. We will now ask the Pramod Sawant government to see whether the house can be acquired and restored into a museum,” Nevin added.
Hopes were raised in 2012 that the ancestral house in ruins would get the much-needed facelift when the BJP government returned to power. Then Navelim MLA and former minister Avertano Furtado had promised at the death anniversary of Dr Gomes that the government would acquire the house from the private owner.
Margao MLA Digambar Kamat rushed to Colmorod after being informed of the house collapse and the danger posed by the dilapidated structure to the other portion of the structure occupied by a family. Kamat conceded that there was a demand that the government should take over the house, but said the process could not take off since the house is in the hands of a private party. “Unless the private owner gives away the property, the government cannot take possession of the house. Unlike the past, now it is even more difficult to acquire the house under the new land acquisition law,” he said.
Kamat added: “I had once spoken to the landlord, but there was no NOC nor consent from the landlord to donate the property to the government. Now, we are facing another issue at the site; a family is staying in the other half of the house. The occupants now fear that the wall may fall on the area occupied by them.”
Former Margao Municipal Chairperson, Savio Coutinho, who visited the spot along with Congress South district president Savio D’Silva told the media that the house is a piece of history and hence the government should consider acquiring the property to set up a museum.
“If the government had to acquire the house 15 years ago, it would have cost less. But, this house is priceless. Roads must have been named after Dr Gomes and monuments built elsewhere, but what is the use if his ancestral house is allowed to crumble down,” he questioned.
