Restore sand dunes: NGT

MARGAOr rIn this context, the NGT has constituted a committee headed by the Member Secretary, GCZMA and comprising of the Member Secretary, Goa State Biodiversity Board and the Chief Town Planner, Town and Country Planning Department to ascertain dimensions of the original Bund/pathway of paddy fields at village Navo Vaddo, in Sernabatim-Colva, Salcete-Goa, with reference to the land survey conducted by the Directorate of Settlement and Land Records of Margao, in the year 1970-71 and further to ascertain the extent of sand dune/s destruction due to dumping of soil and mud within three months. r “On ascertaining the factual situation as aforesaid, take measures to restore the sand dunes by removal of the mud and soil etc dumped on it and such other necessary scientific measures,” the NGT Justice U D Salvi and Dr Ajay A Deshpande said in its order. r The Court directed that expense incurred for this exercise shall be borne by the six Respondent Nos. 4 to 9, with a further direction to these respondents to initially deposit costs of Rs 2 lakh each with the Registry, NGT, (WZ) Bench Pune within a month and defray further expenses incurred by the GCZMA and/or Committee appointed by the court. r Further direction has been issued by the Court to pay an amount of Rs 50,000 to the applicant Colva Civic and Consumer Forum as litigation costs from the amount/costs deposited with the Tribunal. r“Sand dunes are nature’s creations which commonly begin as piles of sand accumulation in the lee of beach debris such as piles of seaweed, clumps of salt marsh straw, and host of human refuse and often act a host for growth of vegetation. Identification of the sand dune with reference to the vegetation is reflected in the reports of i) Fletcher Fernandez, Technical Officer, ii) Dr Antonio Mascarenhas, Expert Member Goa Coastal Zone Management Authority and iii) the Member Secretary, Goa State Biodiversity Board. On touchstone of preponderance of probabilities, there is nothing to discount these reports and these reports clearly outweigh the conclusions drawn by Dr P S Varde. We, therefore, do not find any merit in the submissions made on behalf of Respondent Nos. 4 to 9. Obviously the work carried out by these Respondents of landfilling is completely illegal and unauthorised and most importantly offending to the environment. Respondent Nos. 4 to 9 have thus failed to prove existence of bund as contended by them. However, the Applicant succeeds in proving damage to sand dune/s,” the NGT observed.