MARGAO
Is the Colva police station, which has its jurisdiction over the whole of Salcete's coastal belt, destined to operate from a rented house for want of a full-fledged building of its own?
While many police stations operate from independent premises, the Colva police station has been functioning in a rented house since it was set up decades ago.
Take note, a Magisterial inquiry instituted by the government around nine years ago into a violent incident at the Colva police station had observed that the building is not at all safe to carry out the functions of police administration.
In fact, the inquiry officer was clear in her observations that the Colva police station building is very old with big doors and windows without grills, adding that the police station has no compound wall surrounding the building.
These were amongst the host of observations made by former South Goa Additional Collector, Sandhya Kamat, who was probing into the violence that rocked the Colva police station on June 9, 2013.
It’s now nearly nine years, and the ground reality remains unchanged. The Colva police station continues to function from the same old house which has no lock-up facility, and persons arrested in crimes are being lodged at the Margao police station. In fact, every inch of the old house, including the passage and verandah, is being put to use for official work.
The police department had eyed for Tourism department’s land admeasuring 2,500 square metres, but the proposal did not find favour with the Tourism officials.
The proposal to house the Colva police station in a new building has been pending for around a decade now. Former MLA Caitu Silva had taken up the matter with the then BJP government and the Tourism department but in vain.
Colva police station in-charge PI Melson Colaco said the proposal to house the police station building on the Tourism department land could not take off because of various issues, including CRZ.
“The Goa police has been scouting for land in and around Colva to house the police station”, he added.
