PANAJI
The Supreme Court of India has stayed work on the Rs 77 crore signature bridge connecting Querim and Tiracol after the Goa Foundation approached the Supreme Court challenging the NGT’s order rejecting the appeal against the construction of the bridge.
The Supreme Court bench of Justices Abhay Oka and Sanjay Karol issued notices to the relevant respondents including the State of Goa, the GSIDC among others and ordered that “in the meanwhile the construction of Tiracol river bridge shall not commence.”
The Goa Foundation had earlier filed an application for stay of work on the Rs77 crore “signature bridge” across the Tiracol river before the National Green Tribunal, on grounds of being approved in violation of the CRZ notification. The NGT had initially ordered a stay on the construction.
However, in January 2020, the NGT (Delhi) dismissed the application of the Foundation without hearing from the Foundation. After a Bombay High Court order, the matter was once again placed before the NGT which again in January 2022 dismissed the application without hearing the petitioner on merits. The Goa Foundation filed an appeal before the Supreme Court.
The Foundation argued that Querim beach had been declared as CRZ I because of its outstanding natural beauty and sand dunes, which would not allow construction of a bridge of the kind envisaged as CRZ I beaches are No-Development Zones. The bridge alignment also deviated from the RP 2021 alignment for a proposed bridge.
The Goa Foundation also drew the attention of the NGT that the bridge was not a public facility, since Tiracol had only 50 families, and it was difficult to conceive of a government spending Rs 77 crores for a bridge that would satisfy their requirement of being connected to the mainland, across the river.
The petitioners provided evidence from the records of the GSIDC that the bridge was in fact intended to benefit a private golf course resort to be located in Tiracol village. “In fact, the bridge design was generated by the golf course promoters from Singapore to suit the golf course. The resort putting up the golf course had argued that the “signature bridge” would provide a spectacular entry to their golf resort,” the Goa Foundation has said in its petition.
The matter has been posted for hearing in August.
