PANAJI
Santa Cruz villagers on Saturday morning stopped a private contractor from boring a well near Bondvoll lake, a notified wetland, sparking brief tension at the site.
Officials from the Water Resources Department (WRD), the local Comunidade, and police later arrived and the situation was defused.
Domnick Pereira, a Santa Cruz panch and among those who intervened, expressed shock that the contractor had obtained permissions from both the WRD and the Santa Cruz Panchayat earlier this month.
“Villagers have raised an issue about a construction in the lake’s vicinity. We have also put our demand for a re-survey of the lake’s zone of influence to the Chief Minister, who has promised to look into it. How come such permissions are being issued when the issue is still pending before the government?” Pereira asked.
Residents have long argued that the notified zone of influence around Bondvoll Lake is inadequate and have demanded a fresh survey to ensure stronger protection.
Their concerns were formally conveyed to the government on January 26 through local MLA Rudolf Fernandes. With the matter still awaiting resolution, Saturday’s incident has heightened tensions and renewed calls for stricter safeguards around the ecologically sensitive lake.
