PANAJI
The Bombay High Court at Goa expressed its dismay at the Goa government and the Tourism Department for allowing encroachers to take advantage of Tourism Department’s land and sought the demolition of remaining 42 sq mts of illegal structure at Anjuna that remained standing despite a report before the High Court that the entire structure was demolished.
“All this is possible only because the Government is not vigilant in taking action. In this case, we noted that even after this Petition was dismissed, after a spirited defence put up by the Government in this Court, the Director of Tourism did not enforce the demolition order until the tourist prime season passed,” the High Court observed.
Earlier the Court appointed commissioner, who filed his report, told the Court that “the northern side of the encroachment has been demolished and the existing structure as on date… However, an encroachment of 42 sq mts continues to exist on the eastern side…”
“The demolished area on the northern side needs further demolition and restoration to its original location under the guidance of an environmental expert/Government agency. Similarly, the platform and retaining wall on the Northwest side needs to be further demolished and restored to its original,” the report stated.
While the respondents -- who are the alleged encroachers sought 30 days time to remove the encroachments, the High Court ordered that “these works should be completed within 15 days from today, considering the impending monsoons.”
The High Court has also hiked the costs imposed on the respondents to Rs 1lakh from the earlier Rs 50,000.
