Road-widening for new Zuari Bridge
comes to halt at Agassaim
THE GOAN NETWORK
AGASSAIM
The road-widening work for the new Zuari Bridge has come to a grinding halt at Agassaim since the last three days, after a joint meeting proposed to address the grievances of locals is yet to be convened.
Local vegetable sellers and farmers have refused to allow work to resume till they meet with the contractor, PWD officials and local panchayat officials to discuss the road-widening works in their village.
Tension had prevailed at Agassaim on Tuesday morning, after a group of villagers stopped ongoing work to widen the NH17 for the Zuari bridge, disrupting traffic along the highway near the Goa-Velha bypass road.
According to Agassaim Police, the villagers were furious after the PWD workers started the widening work without taking them into confidence, which affected their traditional farming alongside the NH17 at Agassaim.
The PWD had acquired the land and had started road-widening work but the project has hit a roadblock as locals have claimed that only some of them have received compensation for the acquired lands.
“Much part of this land has been acquired for the expansion purpose and as a result, I cannot grow vegetables anymore. This will make farming difficult for us in future,” lamented Shrimati Gawade, a local farmer.
“The land belongs to a land owner and I use this land for farming activity. My livelihood is dependent on farming. I don't even know if the land owner has been compensated, but I cannot demand any compensation as this land does not belong to me,” she added.
Another affected farmer, Carmeline Gonsalves, told The Goan that farming is her only occupation and that, she is dependent on farming since the last 50 years.
