PANAJI
The High Court of Bombay at Goa has granted an additional three months to the State government to restore paddy fields across 51 survey numbers in Socorro, Guirim and Sangolda, after it failed to meet the previous deadline.
The order comes as the Bench disposed of a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by NGO Goa Foundation, which alleged the government's failure to meet the original six-month deadline for restoring illegally filled paddy fields.
The petitioners argued that while the authorities had not complied with the Court’s directions dated August 2024 to restore the affected fields, it also opposed the government's plea for an extension during the hearing on Tuesday.
The Court however granted the three-month extension while stressing that any further non-compliance would be viewed as contempt of Court.
Advocate Om D’Costa, representing the petitioner, urged immediate action citing ongoing commercial activities in the area and called for the immediate disconnection of electricity and PWD water supply to commercial establishments operating in the affected fields in Socorro.
After the hearing, the Court assured the petitioners that actions would be taken and directed that the restoration work be completed within the extended three-month period. The Court further emphasized that failure to comply would be considered a breach of its order.
