PANAJI: The Governing Council of the North Goa District Mineral Foundation Trust (NGDMFT) has approved a range of development initiatives covering renewable energy, agriculture, waste management, education, healthcare, disability welfare and animal husbandry in mining-affected areas.
The approvals were granted at the council’s 17th meeting, held on September 29, under the chairmanship of the North Goa Collector. The projects aim to improve infrastructure, provide financial assistance to beneficiaries and ensure the effective utilisation of District Mineral Foundation (DMF) funds.
Under the renewable energy initiative, Rs 1.50 crore was sanctioned for a convergence scheme with the PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana. The scheme will provide supplementary assistance of Rs 10,000 per kilowatt, capped at Rs 30,000 per household, for rooftop solar installations across approximately 500 households. NGDMFT will implement the scheme in consultation with the Goa Energy Development Agency (GEDA).
In agriculture, the council approved an additional subsidy scheme worth Rs 1 crore for eligible Krishi Card holders in mining-affected areas. Farmers will receive assistance of up to Rs 20,000 through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT), on a first-come, first-served basis until March 31, 2027. For waste management, Rs 2.03 crore was sanctioned for a 750-square-metre dry waste management shed, while Rs 19 lakh was approved for a one-tonne-per-day Nisargruna rapid composter for the Sanquelim Municipal Council. The facilities will also serve adjoining mining-affected village panchayats.
In education, Rs 40 lakh was earmarked to support eligible mining engineering students from North Goa studying at Goa College of Engineering. The scheme will provide Rs 10 lakh annually to support up to 10 students. Another Rs 27 lakh was approved for a GPS-enabled bus equipped with emergency facilities for Government College, Sanquelim. The council also sanctioned Rs 35.10 lakh to convert the Drawing Hall at Government Polytechnic, Bicholim, into an information and communication technology-enabled smart classroom and digital learning centre.
Under disability welfare, Rs 40 lakh was approved for Keshav Seva Sadhana’s Narayan Zantye School for Special Children in Bicholim to procure a 13-seater vehicle and upgrade its library. An additional Rs 1.35 lakh was sanctioned for therapy equipment at Lokvishwas Pratishthan’s Special School in Honda. The healthcare sector will receive Rs 29.11 lakh for upgrading the operation theatre and diagnostic facilities at the Community Health Centre (CHC), Bicholim. This includes Rs 6.21 lakh for a prefabricated room to house a TrueNat machine for tuberculosis testing. The council also approved Rs 20.62 lakh to upgrade the Veterinary Hospital at Honda, Sattari, strengthening veterinary infrastructure and services in the area.
Besides the project approvals, the council cleared a revised Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) to streamline NGDMFT’s approval process and reduce administrative duplication. Under the revised procedure, proposing departments will be allowed to certify compliance. The council also decided to develop a Five-Year Perspective Plan and an Annual Action Plan through stakeholder consultations to ensure need-based and equitable utilisation of DMF resources.
“These initiatives reaffirm NGDMFT's commitment to the targeted, need-based and sustainable utilisation of DMF resources for the direct benefit of communities and areas affected by mining,” said Member-Secretary of NGDMFT Ratnakant Govenker.
