PANJIM: Demanding to scrap the Goa Land Development and Building Construction (Amendment) Regulations, 2023 as it will completely destroy Goa, the Rainbow Warriors on Friday demanded stringent environmental protection in view of the Climate Change, sea level rise, food and water security of Goans, State Action Plan on Climate Change for the State of Goa.
Opposing the amendments, the Rainbow Warriors demanded that no constructions be permitted in eco-sensitive zone1 and eco-sensitive zone 2 other than for agricultural use as per the existing laws. It also demanded that ward level planning and preparation of Regional Plan 2031 must be initiated immediately as mandated by the Constitution.
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Instead of proposing constructions in eco-sensitive zones, the government must correct the agricultural and eco-sensitive lands that are wrongly demarcated as settlement and industrial zones in Regional Plan 2021 to eco-sensitive zones.
It demanded that all low-lying areas of the State, which are our flood water retention areas, must be fully protected immediately from filling and conversion of use, and permissions granted, ongoing works and proposals requiring filling of low-lying areas must be revoked and/or stopped.
A delegation of Rainbow Warriors on Friday submitted its objections to the Town and Country Planning (TCP) department, demanding to reject the amendments to the Goa Land Development and Building Construction Regulations Town Planner, alleging that it was anti-people and brought only for the short-term profits of a few and will completely destroy the tiny State. We hereby submit the following facts and reasoning,
Rainbow Warriors founder Abhijit Prabhudesai said that the same amendments were dropped a year ago following several representations public protests.
He said that it was incumbent upon the TCP department after the earlier Notification was opposed unanimously by the people that any proposal for amendments be discussed and decided by the people through proper public consultation. But no such consultations have been held prior to the notification of the draft amendments, in gross violation of Constitution and democracy.
