MAPUSA
In a new twist to the debate on the contentious TCP Sections which are already facing legal challenges, Town & Country Planning Minister, Vishwajit Rane on Thursday told the Goa Legislative Assembly that people who have applied for conversion under the controversial Section 16B of the TCP Act can now apply for correction under Section 17(2).
Rane, on Thursday, to a specific query told Nuvem MLA Aleixo Sequeira that the case he brought to the attention of the House can be rectified under Section 17(2) of the TCP Act.
The Nuvem MLA informed that a property was shown as settlement in RP 2001 and RP 2011 but in RP 2021 it was shown as orchard.
“Is it eligible to come under Section 17(2) of the TCP Act?” Sequeira wanted to know and to which the TCP minister answered in the affirmative.
“It is 100 percent eligible to come under this Section 17(2),” Rane said.
To be double sure, Sequeira again said that the particular project was cleared under Section 16B and whether it could be brought under Section 17(2).
“I have said yes. The person can apply same project under Section 17(2) of the TCP Act,” Rane said.
Latching on TCP minister’s response, Fatorda MLA Vijai Sardesai demanded that Section 16B be removed.
“I have moved a private members bill calling for repealing of the Act but the government has maintained stoic silence in the matter,” Sardesai said.
However, the TCP Minister refused to agree to the demand.
Earlier, while answering to Benaulim MLA Venzy Viegas, the TCP minister said that there were mistakes in the Regional Plan 2021 and therefore the government had to bring Section 17(2).
“I don’t want to get into a micro-level discussion on Section 17(2) again. I had said there were a lot of mistakes in RP. We have already tabled the report in the House on why Section 17(2) was necessary. The member can go through it,” he advised the Benaulim MLA.
Viegas asked the TCP minister whether the government can produce proof that the lands that were wrongly zoned in RP 2021 and who had made the error.
He also said if the errors were carried out by the town planners then why the government was demanding the fees for the corrections.
“If the government has made an error should not the government pay for it?” Viegas asked.
The TCP Minister informed that even in the past corrections were done on a case to case basis and it has to be done that way.
“You cannot stop someone from developing his property. If a person wants to develop his property he should have liberty to do it. There should be an appropriate forum for him to go and do it. That was the ideal method followed in the past,” he maintained.
“You cannot do injustice to someone. Remove his areas from settlement and put in any other zone you want. This happened in RP2021,” he added.
Rane also said he was open to suggestions of the members and if there was further scope for corrections and the government was ready to do it.
The TCP minister in a written reply to a starred question said that no land has been converted under Section 17(2) or even under Section 16B of the TCP Act.
