PANJIM, MARCH 26
In a major development on the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) issue, the Union Minister of Environment and Forests, Jairam Ramesh, has asked Goa government to undertake ground verification of the commercial structures violating CRZ Notification, 1991 and initiate action within one month, while providing relief to the fishermen and dwelling houses.
In a letter addressed to Chief Minister Digambar Kamat, Ramesh has said that ground verification survey of the commercial structures should be undertaken by the State agencies not involved in CRZ matters.
The chief minister tabled the letter on the floor of the house after reading its content on Friday.
The chief minister claimed that Ramesh’s letter was a result of the State government’s constant interaction with the Union minister, seeking his intervention to save the structures of fishermen from being razed in the CRZ area.
The State government had sent the proposal to exempt fishermen’s structures including houses, along with the legal opinion given by the advocate general and orders of the High Court of Bombay at Goa on the issue.
Ramesh, in his letter, has said that the list of CRZ violations in Goa was examined and it was found that the majority of the constructions includes net mending sheds, toilets, boat repair yards and extension of existing houses used for warehousing of fish and other products .
“These constructions are permissible under the CRZ Notification, 1991. These structures, however, have been categorised as violation since they have not obtained permission from the Goa Coastal Zone Management Authority,” the letter said.
Referring to the CRZ Notification, 1991, (CRZ-III) he said the area upto 200 metres of high tide line (HTL) is a no development zone where “no construction can be permitted within the zone except for repairs of existing authorised structures not exceeding floor space index, existing plinth area and existing density.
With regards to the construction between 200 to 500 metres, he said according to CRZ notification, “Construction/reconstructions of dwellings units between 200-500 metres of HTL is permitted so long it is within the ambit of traditional rights and customary uses such as existing fishing villages and goathans. Building permissions for such constructions/reconstructions will be subject to the conditions that the total number of dwelling units shall not be more than twice the number of existing units”.
“Also, the total covered area on all floors shall not exceed 33 per cent of the plot size, the overall height not exceeding nine metres with not more than two floors,” he said.
Ramesh said the issue in Goa is that “the dwelling units have increased more than twice the existing units”. Explaining further, he said, the word ‘existing’ has been interpreted as “structures constructed prior to 19-2-1991 by the Union Ministry of Enviroment and Forests, meaning that the number of dwelling units in a plot should not have been doubled after that date.
In this case, it needs to be ascertained that if the plots including the dwelling units were in existence prior to 1991 and the same dweller constructed pucca house on same plot after 1991 when his economic status improved, then, it is not a violation of CRZ notification, 1991.
The Union minister had visited Goa last year and toured the coastal belt feared to be affected by the demolitions. He had also given an assurance that he would try to help the fishermen. Several representations were made to the Centre by the State government to exempt the structures of fishermen in the CRZ area.
