MARGAO
The proposal to declare the Bacbhatt lake, Bacbhatt and Bebki lake at Damon in Raia village as wetlands came under strong objections at the gram sabha of the Raia Panchayat on Sunday.
In fact, the residents inhabiting the two areas where the Wetland Authority of Goa had proposed a draft to notify the Bacbhat and Bebki lakes as wetlands, in one voice rejected the draft notification, demanding the immediate scrapping of the proposal.
The Sunday gram sabha of the Raia Panchayat chaired by Sarpanch Peter Quadros saw a huge turn out of members, especially from Bacbhatt/Uddo and Damon as they came with the one point agenda to demand scrapping of the proposal to declare the Bacbhatt lake and Bebki lake as wetlands.
After adopting the resolution, the gram sabha members called upon the Panchayat to send the resolution to the concerned government agencies for necessary action.
The resolution demanding scrapping of the proposal to declare the two lakes in Raia has come against the backdrop of the fact that the Wetland Authority has initiated the process of seeking objections and suggestions from the local residents. In fact, the process had started on September 29 and the two month period is scheduled to end in December.
Speaking at the gram sabha, former Sarpanch Savio Gomes, hailing from Bacbhatt lodged his strong objection to the proposal to declare the lakes as wetland on the ground that lakes do not remain filled with water round the year.
Pointing out that the residents of Bacbhat/Udo had already lodged their strong objections to the proposal to declare the Bacbhat lake as wetlands, Savio along with the gram sabha members vociferously demanded to cancel the Draft notification and save the lands of the locals, fearing they will be left landless in their own land.
Saying that the local residents were never taken into confidence by the authorities before preparing the draft, Savio said demanded to know the criteria adopted to declare the Bacbhatt lake as wetland, further questioning whether the lake is coming under the purview of wetland.
Saying the residents were taken by surprise after receiving notices from the Panchayat dated November 14 stating that their properties lie in the radius of 50 metre buffer zone from the lake, Savio said the properties listed in the wetland notification has come to the owners either from their ancestors or purchased for the benefit of their children.
“Some of the properties are also converted into non agriculture land and obtained necessary sanad for the same and we have our ancestral houses in it and also built new houses which we live in”, he said.
He added: “We don't understand as to how the seasonal water filled lake at Bacbhatt Tolem becomes wetland, as the lake is filled with water during the month of September, October the sluice gates of the said lakes are being closed for the accumulation/water harvesting in order to irrigate the paddy fields of the vaigan season. During the month of June, we cultivate the paddy in the lake and after the harvesting in the month of September, October the sluice gate is closed in order to irrigate the paddy fields on the other side and this system was going on for centuries now."
Sarpanch Peter Quadros later told the media that the gram sabha has unanimously demanding scrapping of the proposal to declare the two lakes as wetlands.
