>From corrupt, greedy and dodgy Panchayat members from Carmona to Chicalim to Cansaulim, to the Town and Country Planning Department which is on a merry course to approve these mega-projects and construction projects, to of course the biggest goons, thugs and thieves that masquerade as our Goan Politicians and MLAS, while selling Goans and our Goan Villages to further their vested interests and that of their patrons namely the Builders there seems to be no end in sight.
While everyone gets their share of the loot - from the corrupt Panchayat and TCP to of course our MLAS, the builders are breaking all rules and destroying our Goan villages overnight, causing irreparable and irrevrsible damage to the Goan landscape, destroying our Goan villages and the environment and changing the social demographics of our Goan villages. Interestingly when the Panchayat is questioned they try and intimidate 80 plus year old villagers and their own villagers using the muscle power and harrassment tactics. The Panchayat then glibly uses the excuse that it is the Town and Country Planning Department that has approved these projects conveniently washing their hands off. There is an urgent need for more Goans to stand up and fight this evil nexus and expose them for what they are. Don't we Goans have a duty and obligation to protect our Goan villages before it's too late? There is an even more urgent need for Goans to take an active part in our Gram Sabha proceedings and support and back our activists and question our Panchayat members and expose their nefarious and crooked actions. Finally Goans need to take an even more active part in selecting right candidates to represent themselves and protect Goa. "Big builders mould pliant panchayats" - This article below is from the Herald's Editorial January 15th. The Rahejas, even though now divided into groups, are still among Mumbai’s biggest builders. Along with political clout,they have formidable money power. Little wonder that the Carmona Panchayat has fallen over itself in its desperate hurry to give the builders permission to sub-divide the land they own in the village – which they originally bought to set up hundreds of apartments – into what they say is going to be bungalow plots. That the panchayat issued its NOC just days after the Town and Country Planning (TCP) Department issued a provisional NOC to the real estate developer, shows just how eager the Panchas are to please the builders. This great fondness for the Rahejas is nothing new. Even earlier, when the builders wanted to put up hundreds of apartments and completely alter the demographics of the village, the panchayat was completely in step with them. It was the people of the village that opposed the project. Many villagers opposing the project even started getting notices from the panchayat about their own ‘illegal constructions’! But it is perhaps unfair to tar the entire panchayat with the same brush. For, the meeting that gave the approval to the Rahejas was attended by six members, chaired by Sarpanch Estaquio D’Costa. Panch Orlando da Silva, who has been opposing the Raheja project for a very long time, was conspicuous by his absence. He sought leave of absence and put up a note strongly opposing the project on grounds that it is against the wishes of the people. But what is at stake here is not just the wishes of the people. The point is not even that the project may not turn out to be what it purports; so-called ‘bungalow plots’ can quickly be converted into ‘multi-storeyed building plots’. The point is that the project is under a cloud. The panchayat has approved it when an inquiry instituted by the Deputy Director of Panchayat is still pending. Most important, how can such a huge project come up on a road that has a width of just over 3 metres, where two vehicle;es would find it difficult to pass each other side by side? However, Sarpanch D’Costa appears to have measured this road as a five-metre road, which means the panchayat has added the berms to the width of the road, and then stretched it a bit more. He says that while granting the approval, the Panchayat has ensured that the “existing five-metre road” will remain “as it is”, and not a single compound wall or structure will be demolished. The plan drawn up by the Rahejas shows the approach road as 10 metres! A large housing project of this type needs a wide road. At very least it must be six metres wide, so that two vehicles can operate side by side. However, says the Sarpanch, the panchayat has in the past approved plans for private bungalows even where the road is less than five metres wide. This may be true, but how many of those were individual houses and how many were large complexes like this one? Shouldn’t the two have different requirements? The TCP’s provisional NOC, granted last week, says the panchayat should look into “other requirements”. Obviously, the panghayat has overlooked this little stipulation in its tearing hurry to grant permissions. That the TCP has fallen foul of the law is evident, not just in this project but in so many others. Its record in cases filed in the High Court stands testimony. But however much the Rahejas may have got the Panchayat and the TCP wrapped around their little finger, they still have to reckon with the people. And activists from Carmona have now resolved to knock the doors of the judiciary to challenge the decision of the village Panchayat approving Raheja’s plan for sub-division of plots. More power to them; may the people of the village continue to stand strongly by their side.
