02 Mar 2021  |   06:03am IST

Review from Salcete

Momentum against CZMP grows in the run-up to the big public hearing on March 7
Review from Salcete

GARY AZAVEDO

After the ongoing uproar against the coal transportation followed by the three linear projects comprising of the Tamnar Power transmission lines, double tracking and national highway expansion, the public outcry has now shifted to opposing the draft Coastal Zone Management Plan (CZMP) in the rural areas of Goa especially in the Salcete taluka.

This will only strengthen the Opposition political parties in the State with the public movement gaining momentum with two local NGOs – Revolutionary Goans (RG) and now Goencho Avaaz (Goans’ Voice) announcing their decision to enter the political arena.

Most Panchayats in the Salcete taluka, cutting across various political affiliations, are aggrieved with the draft CZMP which they all perceive as totally different from the ones painstaking prepared by them as per the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) Notification 2011 and submitted in 2019.

As the public hearing scheduled on Sunday, March 7 at Ravindra Bhavan, Margao between 10 am and 7 pm approaches, special public meetings followed by gram sabhas are being held in the panchayats to discuss and deliberate the new draft CZMP.

Amidst demands to cancel, postpone or convene the public hearings at the Taluka or local panchayat level, the panchayats have further demanded that the draft CZMP be scrapped and the CZMP prepared and submitted by them in 2019 be adopted. The panchayats have further demanded that the State government depute a knowledgeable expert to explain the technical details in the draft CZMPs to the local villagers. 

Vociferous chants are also being heard of rescheduling this public hearing in view of the facts that the CZMPs painstakingly prepared by them after taking all stakeholders into confidence, with some village committees even conducting site inspections in their village, these CZMPs have all been conveniently ignored by the State government.

Activist and Curtorim resident Oswald ‘Prince’ Fernandes divulged, “The CZMP kept open for public viewing at the Deputy Collector’s office has been kept at such a height of more than one-and-a-half metre. The table is at such a height that you cannot have a proper look and the survey numbers are so minute that you cannot make it out. All the charts are dumped one above the other. They should keep one village map per table so that people can access it easily.”

“After detailed discussions at an emergency meeting held to study and discuss the new plans received by the Betalbatim village panchayat, the Betalbatim villagers decided to write a letter to the authorities stating the errors seen within the preliminary review of the new CZMPs and invite the Goa Coastal Zone Management Authority (GCZMA) and the National Centre for Sustainable Coastal Management (NCSCM) to the village to witness the ground realities for themselves. 

CHINCHINIM-DEUSSUA

Chinchinim-Deussua Sarpanch Inacina Rebello exclaimed, “The panchayat will oppose the plan as it is not as per the wishes of the villagers.” The deputy sarpanch Valentino Barretto added, “The plans prepared by panchayat by taking help from the villagers and stakeholders needs to be approved as it is the people’s plan. The CZMP officials should have deputed qualified experts to explain at panchayat level to the villagers for an hour or so since asking the villagers to inspect this plan is not practical as there is a need for qualified government officials to be appointed to explain to the villagers the technical details like hazard line, mud flap, etc. incorporated in the CZMP.”


CAVELOSSIM

Cavelossim sarpanch Dionizio ‘Denis’ Dias disclosed, “written representations were given to the Environment Minister Nilesh Cabral and the Goa Coastal Zone Management Authority (GCZMA) Member Secretary on February 26 with a request to defer the public hearing on Sunday, March 7. The plans prepared by the Village Panchayat have to be considered as it is the correct approach as per the guidelines for CZMP preparations. The State government should also approve the plans submitted by the Village Panchayat to protect the interest of the local people.”


ASSOLNA

Assolna sarpanch Xavier Almeida remarked, “The Assolna Village Panchayat has requested that the draft CZMP be rejected and scrapped as none of our suggestions have been incorporated in the new draft CZMP for Assolna village. The Assolna Village Panchayat through it’s appointed committee had prepared a CZMP based on the inputs from the fishing community, experienced senior citizens and all stakeholders after conducting a site inspection of the village which was approved by the gram sabha.”

IDhar UDHAR

Idhar Udhar