Old market feast fair ends, but fate of parking project still hangs in balance

While hawkers and vendors have dismantled and lifted away the material used to erect the stalls on the MMC-acquired land for parking, no developmental activity to commence work on the parking project is seen on the land to date.

On April 22, the MMC had orally told the contractor appointed by the Goa State Urban Development Agency (GSUDA) to stop work on the project after the entire acquired land was secured with tin sheets.

When The Goan called up MMC Chairperson Damu Shirodkar to shed light on the fate of the project, he was quick to say that GSUDA officials are yet to visit the civic body with the plans and the schedule for completion of the project.

“The MMC had told the contractor to stop the work to find out the nature of the project, its date of completion and whether it would affect the sopo collection,” Shirodkar said.

He added: “To date, the GSUDA officials have not come with the plans and the details of the project. In the absence of any details, how am I going to explain to the City Fathers if they question me about the nature of the parking project? Once, the officials explain the details, GSUDA may go ahead with the project.”

GSUDA officials, on the other hand, in private, say the contractor will start dumping construction material on the ground to resume work on the project.

“What is there to explain to the MMC or the civic chief on the project? The entire process of floating the tender for the parking plaza project and the issuance of work order started after the proposal came from MMC,” remarked an official in the know.

The official pointed out that the GSUDA-appointed contractor may start the work anytime after dumping the construction material, even saying: “If the MMC wants to stop the work on the project, let it officially issue an order to stop work on the project.”