SPOTLIGHT | Dilapidated but untouched: Why won’t CCP use its powers in Panaji?

ASHLEY DO ROSARIO | JULY 27, 2025, 12:49 AM IST

PANAJI
Some twenty-odd buildings in the capital city have been put on the chopping block by the Corporation of the City of Panaji over the last 2-3 years because they are old and structurally weak, and therefore dangerous.

But only two have been demolished to date – one, its own old market building next to the fish market in October last year, and the second, a privately owned collapsing ground-plus-one house on MG Road.

In both cases, despite having sweeping powers under the Corporation of the City of Panaji (CCP) Act, 2002, the Disaster Management Act was invoked, and the demolition was executed following orders issued by the North Goa Collector or District Magistrate, who heads the North Goa District Disaster Management Authority.

Some of the buildings identified as unsafe in the capital are: Navrat Apartments in St Inez, the partly wooden, partly concrete structure of Palacio Hotel behind the Old Secretariat, a section of the Susheela Building along 18th June Road, the Progress High School building near the Panjim Church, and the ground-plus-one tile-roofed Vaglo building, which also houses the famed Clube Nacional.

Sweeping powers

A whole chapter in the CCP Act, 2002, is dedicated to how the capital city's civic body should deal with "Dangerous and Insanitary Buildings". The three sections and 10 sub-sections encompassed in this chapter give sweeping powers to the Commissioner to deal with: (a) buildings unfit for human habitation; (b) buildings in a dangerous state; and (c) abandoned buildings.

In the case of buildings not fit for human habitation, the Commissioner can invoke powers under section 271 of the Act, and the seven sub-sections therein lay down the procedure he has to follow to evacuate these buildings, and subsequently order the owners to repair or demolish the structure.

The next section in the chapter deals with buildings which are in a "dangerous state" and gives the Commissioner powers for their removal. The three sub-sections of this section lay down the procedure and process the Commissioner needs to follow to order the occupiers and/or owners to either remove or demolish a wall, structure, or anything affixed thereto, or conduct repairs necessary for public safety.

The Commissioner also has powers to "forcibly remove" the occupiers and/or owners if he deems the danger to be imminent. Similar powers have been bestowed on the CCP Commissioner to handle abandoned and unoccupied buildings and structures by section 273 of the CCP Act.

CCP Commissioner Clen Madeira could not be reached for comments, but sources in the civic body's technical section said the biggest hurdle faced in planning and executing the demolition of such buildings is the fact that these are partly occupied, mostly by tenants, and any action would entail litigation and legal complications.

"That's why the administration prefers to use the Collector's route under the more powerful Disaster Management Act," a senior engineer in the CCP told 'The Goan'.

Another edifice in market area slated for demolition

After completing the demolition of the old market building adjacent to the fish market shed, which housed some meat and poultry stalls, the CCP has taken concrete steps to demolish yet another edifice in the same area owned by it, which housed the Kamal Medical Store on its ground floor.

The CCP sealed shops in it after the stability report furnished by the Goa Engineering College declared it "unsafe". The building has been cordoned off, and officials say it will be brought down "soon". However, a major hurdle faced by the civic body in carrying out the demolition is evacuating the adjoining Falcon Apartments, which houses the famous 'Cream Centre', Luis & Co, and a few occupied residential flats. Notices served to them have not succeeded in getting the building evacuated.

According to CCP engineer Venkatesh Sawant, 18 more old and dilapidated structures have been identified. A final structural report from the GEC for each of these buildings is awaited before the Corporation can take a call on whether to demolish them or direct the occupants/owners to conduct repairs, he added.

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