MARGAO
When the District Planning Committee (DPC) for South Goa began consolidating the District Development Plan for the financial year 2024–25 on January 11, 2024 —by compiling proposals received from the Zilla Panchayat, village Panchayats, and Municipalities—officials of the Margao Municipal Council (MMC) suggested a few development proposals for the commercial capital.
Little did the MMC officials realize, however, that the civic body was actually required to submit its own annual development plan to the District Planning Committee, rather than merely suggesting proposals, raising a pertinent question: how many Municipalities in Goa actually prepare annual development plans each year? Moreover, has the Director of Municipal Administration ensured compliance with this statutory obligation?
This issue had come under judicial scrutiny in 2020, when the NGO United Goans Foundation filed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) highlighting the failure of the government, Panchayats, and Municipalities to prepare and submit their annual development plans to the DPCs.
In its observations, the High Court had stated: “Section 184F of the Goa Municipalities Act, 1968, mandates every Council to prepare every year the development plan and submit it to the District Planning Committee constituted under Section 239 of the Panchayat Raj Act, 1994. However, there is no provision specifying the date by which such plans must be submitted”.
To ensure effective implementation of Section 184F, the Court had told the Director of Municipal Administration to direct all Municipal Councils in Goa to submit their annual development plans to the District Planning Committee.
These directions were issued by the High Court on February 20, 2020. Yet, five years later, crucial questions remain unanswered. Have the Municipal bodies complied with the High Court’s directive? Has the Director of Municipal Administration issued the required circulars or memorandums instructing civic bodies to prepare and submit their annual development plans?
Most importantly, leave alone submitting the development plan to the District Planning Committee, how many of the Municipal bodies have actually prepared the annual development plans since the Court’s 2020 order.
