We are living in a strange India even though we have an elaborate written Constitution to govern the country in a judicious manner so that law of the land prevails and justice is delivered to all sections of the society without fear or fervour. But when the Constitution is dumped in a dust bin it is not the rule of the law it is the privilege of the few whom we elect as our representatives and they shape our destiny according to their whims and fancies.
Goa has long been known for its unique natural beauty, its silver sand virgin beaches, its serene greenery and above all, the hospitable nature of Goans. While the beauty of Goa invites the Indian tourists and foreign tourists the warm friendly hospitable nature of Goans makes Goa different from other places in India and many Indians have settled in Goa while the foreign tourists visit Goa often perhaps every year. Against this backdrop there is lobby of the builders of Goa which have so far developed Goa with buildings having flats, row houses and even independent bungalows.
With what benevolence the outside builders come to Goa. Let us take the case of Raheja Builders who have been shown the door in 2008 when their file for construction of around 550 flats on 88000 sq. metres on the land of tiny quite coastal village of Carmona in Salcete was put on hold by the then Government of Goa, the file was returned back by the Town and Country Planning Department to the Village Panchayat against stiff opposition by the Carmona Citizens Forum. Quite surprisingly the file has been re-submitted with changes of 80-odd bungalows and the Village Panchayat has given its approval for Rahejas to go ahead much against the wishes of the villagers just days before Gram Sabha which was scheduled on September 13, 2015. By such an action, the Village Panchayat has ignored the wishes of the villagers and hence has no right to remain in office. It is prudent on the part of the members of the Panchayat to resign from their posts and join the villagers in their fight of protecting their own village.
Here we have to keep in mind the village belongs to the villagers first and the villagers have every right to protect the topography/demography of their village to avoid its urbanization or for being outnumbered in their own village. The road leading from Margao to Carmona on sight is not even 10 meters in width. The projected road may be 15 metres. There is no proper supply of electricity in Carmona. Water supply is erratic. There is no sewerage system at all in the village for such a project to be okayed. There is no system for disposal/treatment of garbage in Carmona.
Village Panchayat is the local self governing body under the Panchayati Raj system and it has to protect the village and the interests of the villagers by holding Gram Sabhas, take the feedback of the villagers for the betterment of the village invite suggestions from the villagers which can be passed on the state government . Since this has not happened it will now be a people’s movement in Carmona against the Rahejas for which the state government has to take concrete steps to stop mega housing projects in Goa.
