The Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant is in the news this week, showing Goans that he is planting trees in some places in Goa this monsoon season; the latest being some tree saplings being planted at the Goa Legislative Assembly complex (in presence of the Environment Minister and others). However on the other hand, Sawant's government including his environment minister and particularly his TCP Dept , are giving so many permissions to the real estate/builder lobby to destroy thousands of trees/mangroves, convert fields/green areas, cut hills and many times overriding environmental laws. The Environment Minister Aleixo Sequeira is seen giving great speeches to students to preserve the environment but he himself is involved in massive environmental destruction as particularly seen in the Benaulim/Carmona area. Goa Chief Minister should come clean on these and other so many prominent environmental violations in Goa, before advertising himself and PM Narendra Modi as "champions" of trees.
