MARGAO
The Goa Land Development & Building Construction Regulations, 2010 came in for strong objection at the extraordinary gram sabha meeting of the Varca panchayat on Sunday.
The resolution adopted by the gram sabha stated that the Village Panchayat of Varca shall do all that is necessary to ensure that the TCP Department rejects the Goa Land Development and Building Construction (Amendment) Regulations, 2022, including writing to the authorities immediately endorsing and enclosing this resolution, engaging the authorities and government and approaching the courts, if necessary, and that the village panchayat shall also ensure that the resolutions adopted for ward level planning, preparation of RP 2031 for stronger environmental protection and immediate protection of all low-lying areas are implemented.
While rejecting the Goa Land Development and Building Construction (Amendment) Regulations, 2022, the gram sabha demanded that instead amendments must be initiated for stringent environmental protection given the Climate Change, Sea Level Rise, Food & Water Security, etc, State Action Plan on Climate Change for the State of Goa, past destruction of the environment and various scientific studies demanding stronger protection of the environment.
The gram sabha further demanded that ward-level planning and preparation of RP 2031 for stronger environmental protection must be initiated immediately. The resolution stated that all low-lying areas of Goa, which are our flood water retention areas, must be protected immediately from all conversions.
The gram sabha demanded that permissions be granted, ongoing works and proposals requiring the filling of low-lying areas must be revoked and stopped, and any constructions on eco-sensitive zones, (eco-l & eco-II zones are also called A1 & A2 zones) shall be prohibited.
Saying the proposed amendments are in gross violation of the RP 2021, TCP Act, 1974, the parent Act, the non-regression principle, the Precautionary Principle, and Articles 14, 19 and 21 of the Constitution of India, the gram sabha stated that Article 243 of the Constitution empowers panchayats and municipalities to carry out numerous functions under the Schedule 11 and 12 respectively which are directly affected by the subject amendments.
The Constitution also provides for planning of land use at the ward level and for preparing spatial plans and the land use and economic development within the panchayat area are to be decided by the village panchayat. The subject amendments without involving the panchayats are in gross violation of Article 243 of our Constitution, the resolution added.
The resolution was proposed by Thomas Da Costa and seconded by Gladinus D’Souza and unanimously passed by all gram sabha members present for the said meeting.
