SUNDAY, MAY 19, 2024
Team Herald
PANJIM: Another protest will be organised on Sunday, August 1 at Old Goa to oppose the structure that has come up in a protected area around St Cajetan Church at Old Goa.
Heritage lovers and locals are enraged that this construction is encroaching the world heritage site and can set a precedent wherein in the future other such constructions will come up at the cost of other heritage monuments in Goa.
The protestors have asked the public if in the year 2040; they want Old Goa as it is today to be preserved and possibly even better maintained or if they are okay with a concrete jungle coming up in this sacred space.
The protest will be held at 4 pm today.
Furthermore, the Goa Heritage Action Group (GHAG) has written to the world heritage centre, UNESCO seeking its intervention in the matter. They received a reply from the Deputy Director (World Heritage) saying that their team will be following up. This reply has been forwarded to Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) New Delhi.
It may be recalled UNESCO had threatened to remove its world heritage tag for monuments in Hampi, which got the Karnataka government to take action and protect the structures under threat. Here, the State government has allowed the construction despite objections from ASI Goa.
GHAG has also written to the International Council on Monuments and Sites asking them to intervene as well.
