PANAJI
The Town & Country Planning (TCP) has issued a show-cause notice to ‘Sir Biotech India Pvt Ltd’ for carrying out illegal hill cutting at a commercial zone in Ribandar by violating the mandatory permission.
The private firm, having its office at Verna Industrial Estate, has been asked to show cause within seven days as to why TCP should not revoke the permission.
The ongoing activity that ran into controversy for massive hill cutting has also been stopped as the North Goa Planning and Development Authority issued a two-page ‘show cause-cum-stop work notice’ on Tuesday.
“The permission issued under section 17-A was limited to merely excavation for footings and foundations, whereas you deviated from the approved plan by bluntly excavating and cutting the hill beyond the scope of the permission granted. Therefore you have been remiss in adherence to the permission given under section 17-A of the TCP Act, 1974,” reads the notice signed by NGPDA Member Secretary R K Pandita.
A site inspection of TCP officials led by Minister Vishwajit Rane, NGPDA and the panchayat members on Monday prima facie found that the owner/s of the property violated the permission granted mid-last year. The property is situated in the area zoned as a Commercial C-2 zone in the Outline Development Plan 2011 of Panaji Planning Area.
The NGPDA further observed that the activity could lead to mudslides during the monsoon pointing that the material, mounted to an approx. 15-20 metres height towards the northwest side abuts the service road.
“It will lead to high incidents of slide or otherwise, in the rainy season and the same is dangerous endangering the lives of those living in the northern side of the property,” it said.
The agency is also found to have carried out excavation that will disrupt the land’s overall profile.
