PANAJI
In a significant move, the State government has initiated a procedure for panchayat areas where households fragmenting into nuclear families but live in the same house will no longer have to partition the property to seek distinct house numbers to get separate water and power connections.
Chief Minister Pramod Sawant said after a cabinet meeting on Wednesday that all panchayats in Goa will soon be issued directions in a circular to simplify the procedure to grant permissions for bifurcation of house numbers for the same house without partition of the plot or other complicated formalities.
Sawant said the entire process of applying for the house bifurcation and issuing of a separate house number will be done free of cost without charging any fees within 15 days of filing the application.
He added that a circular will be issued through the Directorate of Panchayats and implementation will commence from Monday and will be applicable to houses on comunidade land as well.
The separate house numbers will be issued with a suffix such as A, B or C to the original one, he said, adding that it will come in handy especially where households face filial disputes among the nuclear families of siblings.
Applicants are required to submit a simple application in Form 'A', a dimensioned sketch of the portion they occupy, a copy of the house tax receipt of the existing house, a death certificate of the original assessee (if applicable), and documents proving familial linkage with the original householder, such as a birth certificate, ration card or bank passbook. Form I & XIV is also to be submitted.
Panchayats are required to inspect the premises to verify the claim and ensure that the portion has a separate kitchen and is contiguous with the main structure. Upon verification, the bifurcation house number will be issued with a suffix (e.g., /A, /B) to the original house number, and NOCs for water and electricity connections may also be provided upon request.
He, however said, consent from all parties within the family will be necessary adding that the Sarpanch and the Secretary may have to mediate and resolve issues where objections are raised.
Soon the procedure will also be made applicable in cities and towns through the civic bodies, he added.
Sawant said the decision has been taken close on the heels of the recent one where panchayat secretaries were mandated to issue house repair licences within three days of it being applied for.
"It is being implemented across the State and people have given us good feedback. On the same lines we have now decided to reform the procedures involved in getting bifurcation done and issue separate house numbers for nuclear families to improve the 'ease of living' in the villages," Sawant said.
