Withdraw notices to illegal houses: Mapusa councillors

“Is the engineering section trying to usurp the power of the council? Who gave them the authority to send notices to the so-called illegal houses?” said a livid Sandip Falari, former chairperson and senior councillor.

He demanded that all the notices issued to the illegal houses be withdrawn without any further delay.

The engineering section of the MMC had recently issued notices to 153 illegal houses in private and comunidade land in Cunchelim.

The Municipal Engineer had called the owners of such houses for a hearing in the first week of November.

Councillor Rajsingh Rane said the notices were unfortunate as the council had already decided to regularise the illegal houses in the municipal jurisdiction.

According to councillor Franky Carvalho, the notices were issued based on a complaint filed by an RTI activist.

He alleged that the RTI activist was now using the notices to extort money from the owners of the illegal houses.

He further alleged that the RTI activist was harassing the municipality staff and threatening the municipal inspectors in the market.

‘MMC staff must be educated on RTI Act’

Stating that nobody should fear an RTI activist, Mapusa councillor Madhumita Narvekar said the staff of Mapusa civic body should be educated about the RTI Act so that they do not feel threatened by any activist.

“Nobody should get scared of an RTI activist. There is a need to conduct a workshop on the RTI Act and educate the municipal staff about it,” Narvekar said.

She was responding to the allegations that the civic staff viewed the RTI activist with awe and did not want to be on the wrong side of him.