PANAJI
Town and Country Planning (TCP) Minister Vishwajit Rane, cornered for weeks by activists and political opponents over alleged misuse of land conversion powers, has struck back with an audacious move: reclassifying vast tracts of land as “no development zones” under Section 39A of the TCP Act.
The TCP department has notified the proposals mooted by the TCP Board to lock 82.8 lakh sq mts of land across the State beyond the scope of any development.
The largest parcel -- 65.31 lakh sq mts in Keri, Sattari, his political pocket borough -- comprises natural cover, slopes, and irrigation command areas.
Another 6.44 lakh sq mts of orchard land in Pernem taluka's Mandrem village, has also been earmarked for NDZ classification, along with purportedly ecologically sensitive stretches in Majorda (2.5 lakh sq mts) and Gonsua (1.95 lakh sq mts) and another 1.03 lakh sq mts in Cavelossim of Salcete taluka.
The move first stirred a bit of controversy in Cavelossim, when the TCP notice which had recommended reclassification of 1.03 lakh sq mts of mixed use land like paddy fields, orchards, mangroves, and settlement, as non developable took everyone by surprise.
Local sarpanch Dixon Vaz expressed surprise that neither the panchayat nor the landowner had applied for such zoning, while questioning the unilateral nature of the decision.
Rane, however, had insisted the exercise was “restoration, not conversion”. He argued that paddy fields cannot be converted in certain areas and that the TCP was merely reverting land to its original ecological state.
He had also clarified to Benaulim MLA Venzy Viegas that the notification was aimed at protecting fragile terrain.
Rane’s sudden pivot to largescale “restoration” has come at a time when he faces mounting criticism, including from former Chief Justice Ferdino Rebello with his 'Enough is Enough' movement, over alleged corruption in land conversions.
The backlash had escalated dramatically when St Andre MLA Viresh Borkar staged a fast and hundreds of protesters marched to Dona Paula, laying siege to Rane’s residence. The high decibel protest underscored the growing anger against what was seen as rampant and opaque land conversion for real estate interests.
Now by vocally championing ecological protection, Rane appears to be scoring political brownie points, reframing Section 39A from a tool of dubious conversions into one of environmental safeguarding.
Whether this gambit of wielding Section 39A once blamed for enabling unchecked conversion for real estate growth to lock land away from development calms the storm or stirs more suspicion, one thing is clear: the war for optics around the politics of land is far from over.
