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Anjuna farm houses row:Farming Society dispels fears
HERALD REPORTER
PANJIM, April 8
The members of Panorama Harvests Co-operative Collective Farming
Society Ltd, Anjuna, which has been in the news for sometime now, have
asserted that there is nothing illegal in what they have been doing on
atop a hill in Anjuna and have expressed concern over the
“misinformation instigated by some”, regarding the alleged “farm
houses” atop a hill at Anjuna.
“We are a registered audited Farming Society formed under the bye-laws
of the Maharashtra Co-operative Society Act 1960, as applied to Goa,
(now according to the Goa Co-op Societies Act) and has its area of
operation extended to Anjuna, Arpora and Calangute villages. Our main
objectives are to promote farming and other related activity in the
area of operation”, said Nilesh Dabholkar, Chairman, The Panorama
Harvests Co-operative society.
Among the active members of the farming society are the original tenant
and 3 families of cashew pluckers, who even now are working on the
collection and extraction of cashew and cashew juice. They have been
doing this for nearly 50 years, he said denying that it was a cattle
grazing land.
Over last few years, tens of thousands of trees have been planted and
nurtured including teak, mangium, cashew, herbs and other fruit trees.
The panchanama conducted by the Forest Department will bear this out,
Dabholkar said. Many of our members are actively concerned with
environmental issues, organic farming, and we have worked with many
NGOs towards this cause, he claimed.
Membership of the society, he said, is open to anyone who is genuinely
interested in these activities of agriculture, plantation, forestry,
floriculture, beekeeping and related matters in the area of operation.
“As the Society has been granted permissions for agri-horti projects
only, we intend to comply with this faithfully and do not intend to ask
for any kind of conversion, which in any case, is not permitted by our
bye-laws”, the press note said.
Referring to the 39 plots, Dabholkar said all are committed to
plantations of various sorts. On about half the plots we may come up
with farmhouses for some of our own financing members and even these
plots would have forest and other plantations.
As regards No Development Zone as proposed in 2011 Regional Plan, the
initial NOC for internal subdivision for plots each of at least 4000m2
for agri-horticultural purposes, including road was given as far back
as 1994. The final NOC was given by TCP in 2006, after taking contours
into account. No hill cutting permission was necessary, Dabolkar
claimed.
Therefore, on a plot of say 4000m2, the coverage will not be of more
than 100 m2. “We have passed a resolution disallowing compound walls,
and giving free access for harvesting and collection purposes”.
A large portion of the land will be committed to nature walks through a
botanical garden, well suited for birdwatchers and hikers alike.
Included among the activities will be the continuation of cashew
collection and juice extraction which has been going on for several
years, nursery and landscaping services, forest plantation, etc, with
only organic farming methods. This year, more emphasis will be put on
the growing of exotic flowers. “While ruling out building of bore
wells, we hope to carry out water harvesting to increase the water
table for the whole area”.
http://www.oheraldo.in/news/Local%20News/Anjuna-farm-houses-row-Farming-Society-dispels-fears/35620.html
COMMENT: Most cashew trees from the area have been felled.
There are concrete structures coming up in these plots, which are not farm
houses but buildings!
Moi-mogan,
Domnic Fernandes
Anjuna, Goa
Mob: 9420979201
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