ASHLEY DO ROSARIO
PANAJI
The Supreme Court’s recent judgment upholding a citizen’s right to walk freely on footpaths as a fundamental right has struck a chord in Goa, where pedestrians have long struggled against encroachments, parked vehicles, and civic indifference.
The ruling, delivered by Justices P S Narasimha and A S Chandurkar, declared that the right to walk on demarcated footpaths flows from Articles 19(1)(d) and 21 of the Constitution, obligating civic bodies to ensure pedestrian infrastructure is created and protected.
For Goa, the decision revives memories of Justice Ferdino Rebello’s order in the early 1990s, when, as a judge of the Bombay High Court, he directed authorities to clear footpaths of hawkers and illegal structures.
That ruling, however, met with reluctance from successive governments and municipal councils, who hesitated to act against politically sensitive encroachments. The result was decades of neglect, with footpaths in Panaji, Margao, and Mapusa often reduced to extensions of shops, parking bays, or dumping grounds.
Citizens now say the new Supreme Court ruling must not meet the same fate.
Panaji resident Melwin Ribeiro points out the everyday reality. “The Supreme Court has rightly declared that the right to walk on a footpath is a fundamental right. However, in Panjim, especially along D B Road near the CoP, Fontainhas, and other parts of the city, sections of footpaths are frequently being used for car parking. This is most commonly seen during the evening hours and until early morning."
He said that pedestrians, including senior citizens, children, and visitors, are often forced to walk on the roads, compromising their safety.
Several others across the State, mostly parents, echo similar concerns, worrying about their children navigating busy roads without safe walkways and senior citizens highlight the risk of accidents.
The implications of the Supreme Court’s ruling are clear but what is not clear is whether Goa’s government and civic bodies, including the Corporation of the City of Panaji, will treat them as priority and stop treating pedestrian rights as secondary.
A senior Secretary-level bureaucrat told The Goan that encroachments and illegal parking now stand in direct violation of constitutional guarantees and opined that the government will have to come up with an action plan.
"We expect the Union Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) to issue guidelines to States on the Supreme Court judgement," the senior bureaucrat said, pointing out that citizens could soon be approaching courts to enforce compliance.
Three decades after Justice Rebello’s order, the highest court has reaffirmed that footpaths belong to pedestrians. Whether Goa’s authorities finally act on this principle will determine if the ruling translates into safer, walkable cities or remain yet another missed opportunity.
