CCF demands immediate action against offenders
CCF President Premanand Diukar along with the villagers object to illegal felling of trees at Sinquerim hill in Candolim.
MAPUSA
After Baga hill, the focus has now shifted to Candolim panchayat area as a large number of trees have been allegedly hacked on the Sinquerim hill which is a no-development zone.
While no one is aware who is responsible for the destruction of the green cover in the forested land, locals fear that the real estate lobby may be eyeing the property which offers a panoramic view from top.
Decrying the destruction of trees along with the rich biodiversity in the area, some villagers along with the Calangute Constituency Forum (CCF) have taken up the task to protect their land and wrote to various authorities with an appeal to conduct an inspection and stop the massacre of the trees.
“There are several medicinal plants here. The whole area is rich with biodiversity with the plant and animal life which was preserved for the last several decades. We need to protect this land for posterity. We have written to the collector, the State biodiversity board and even the local panchayat about the destruction but so far no one has responded,” said Premanand Diukar, President of CCF.
He said the huge property is covered by natural green vegetation and biodiversity with canopy density of above 10 percent.
He further said that as per a Supreme Court order dated Feb 4, 2015 no conversion of land in Goa can be approved of any plot which is above 1 hectare in size and has forest canopy density of more than 10 percent.
“The canopy of green natural vegetation and biodiversity on the hills of Goa is being destroyed by the developers for selfish motives in the name of development, which may be due to negligence or overlooking the environmental impact of the area by the competent authorities,” Diukar said.
The CCF had also filed a complaint against the alleged illegal felling of trees with the Range Forest Office, Panaji.
“The forest officials had inspected the area based on our complaint but despite the department’s action the illegal felling of trees continues,” the CCF chief said.
Diukar also appealed to the Calangute MLA to visit the place and stop the destruction of the hill.
