PANAJI
The Central government constituted committee to finalise the eco-sensitive areas (ESA) of Goa region of Western Ghats is likely to meet the Chief Minister Pramod Sawant and others on Monday to take state’s view on the ESA.
A seven-member committee headed by retired IFS Sanjay Kumar is constituted by the Union ministry for Environment, Forest and climate change (MoEF&CC). The committee arrived in Goa on Friday. The Ministry in its draft notification issued in July, 2022 had listed 99 villages -- spread across Sattari, Sanguem and Canacona -- as ESA.
The draft notification was strongly opposed by the State government as well as the Opposition. The State in its representation to the Ministry had requested to include only 59 villages as ESA.
Sources informed that the committee will meet the Chief Minister, Environment Minister, Chief Secretary and Environment Secretary on Monday to deliberate on the issue. “The committee already had meeting villagers and other stakeholders in Canacona and Sattari taluka,” sources said.
The High Level Working Group in its report submitted in 2014 had divided Goa’s Western Ghat region into three talukas identifying 99 villages “ Sattari (56), Sanguem (38) and Canacona (3). However, the State later divided Sanguem taluka into Sanguem and Dharbandora in 2015.
In its representation to the Centre in October, last year, the State requested the Centre to include 59 villages that meet the required criteria, in the Draft Notification for the Western Ghats Ecologically Sensitive Areas, in order to prevent overlapping protection regimes and to maintain uniform boundaries and contiguity.
The State had pointed out that out of Goa’s total geographical area of 3,702sq km, it is hardly left with 342 sq km area (only 9.25%), which can be made use of for growth and development. He said that the rest comprises forest area, CRZ, agricultural land and green cover.
