MONDAY, MAY 06, 2024
Team Herald
MARGAO: Opposition Leader Digambar Kamat on Saturday accused the government of curtailing the Budget Session of Goa Legislative Assembly to 13 days commencing from March 24 with an ulterior motive to avoid questions on the core issues such as Mhadei, coal transportation, railway double tracking, three linear projects and Coastal Zone Management Plan (CZMP).
As per the revised schedule announced by the Legislature Secretariat on February 26, only two days are allotted for Question Hour of the key departments such as Environment and Climate Change, Ports, Water Resource, Power, Public Health, River Navigation, Tourism, Waste Management, Industries, Social Welfare and others.
"The government is afraid to face questions from the Opposition on contentious issues like Mhadei, railway double tracking, Coastal Zone Management Plan, effect of Major Ports Bill passed by the BJP government at the Centre, marina project at Nauxi, failure of the government on garbage management, etc,” claimed Kamat.
“The tabling of the Legislative Assembly Questions (LAQs) is fixed from March 1 to March 17, 2021. This is the time when the MLAs will remain busy with the canvassing of municipal elections and Zilla Panchayat by-elections which are scheduled on March 20, 2021. This is an attempt by the BJP government to keep the Opposition MLAs engaged in election campaigning and divert their attention from tabling questions which will ultimately cause embarrassment to the government and expose their failures and lies,” he charged.
“Instead of extending the session by just a day, the government should have extended it by seven days. We are of the firm opinion that a full-fledged 21 working days Assembly session needs to be convened and I will strongly raise the matter at the Business Advisory Committee Meeting,” he said.
“It is only after my strong objection to the schedule of the Assembly Session coinciding with the Holy Week that the government altered the time table of the session and declared April 1 (Maundy Thursday) as non-working day,” he claimed.
