the goan I network
MARGAO
The Davorlim gram sabha witnessed an uproar over multi-storied housing projects, with agitated members calling for a complete cap on the multi-dwelling units in the village in the absence of infrastructural facilities such as garbage disposal, power supply and roads.
At the Sunday gram sabha chaired by deputy Sarpanch Deepak Mangalam, gram sabha members bitterly protested over the clearance of a housing project without the six-meter road on the site. Even as the deputy Sarpanch maintained that the Panchayat issues the construction license based on the clearances from the TCP, gram sabha members were unsatisfied over the reply, as they strongly demanded that the Panchayat keep on hold all the housing projects approved by the TCP without taking into account the ground reality.
Gram sabha member Andrew Rebello drew attention of the chair to a housing project which has been approved without taking into account the road requirement. Rebello and other gram sabha members asserted that the road on the round is not even three meters, and wondered whether the road would be widened by razing down the houses and walls of the villagers.
The meeting witnessed an uproar when the chair was hesitating to adopt a resolution demanding a ban on the multi-dwelling units in the village, but the gram sabha members got the resolution adopted with a demand to send the resolution to the Town and Country Planning department and the Chief Minister.
Andrew Rebello later told the media that the members have passed a resolution demanding a total stop to multi-dwelling units. “In the resolution, we have demanded that the TCP should keep on hold all proposals of builders for housing projects in Davorlim. The people have no objection if local residents, including brothers put their files for individual houses, but we have demanded that not a single mega housing project should be passed in Davorlim”, he said.
He demanded that the TCP department and the TCP Minister Vijai Sardesai should take interest in Davorlim by keeping multi-dwelling units on hold. “Let the builders go to court. The panchayat will contest all issues in the court”, Rebello added.
The meeting also witnessed heated discussion on the waste disposal, with members critical of the Panchayat over the absence of waste disposal mechanism in the village. Members charged that the Panchayat has not resolved the garbage menace till date and wondered how the Panchayat can issue construction licenses for new housing projects.
Deputy Sapranch Mangalam told the members that the Panchayat has drawn up a plan to start door to door waste collection in a segregated form by giving separate bins for the households. “The Panchayat will set up a wet disposal machine to treat wet garbage generated in the village. We have also increased the budget outlay for waste collection and disposal mechanism”, Mangalam said.
The Chair also assured agitated members, who raised the issue of illegal road side businesses, including furniture outlets, that the Panchayat will survey all illegal businesses from Tuesday before cracking a whip.
Gram sabha members also made a plea to the Panchayat to reserve ground for thrashing paddy in thecoming season.
