Team Herald
MAPUSA: The villagers of Parra and Arpora-Nagoa on Monday welcomed the decision of the Town and Country Planning (TCP) department to exclude their villages from the Planning and Development Areas (PDAs).
The residents have been demanding that the PDAs be scrapped ever since the inclusion of the two villages a few years ago. They had also staged agitations to voice their issues but were ignored. Parra and Arpora-Nagoa villages were part of the North Goa Planning and Development Authority (NGPDA). Both these villages will cease to be planning areas once effective changes are made in the Outline Development Plans (ODPs).
However, not all stakeholders are on the same page.
"I am not convinced with the action taken by the TCP Minister or the TCP board, since they have stated that permissions that were granted by the department will be respected. If so, then what are they really reverting? Is this only on paper?” questioned Roshan Mathias of the Goencho Swabhiman Party.
Most of the builders who pushed for the ill-conceived ODP have been given construction permissions that the TCP now wants to honour, he said.
“Tenanted comunidade lands are being reverted to settlement status. Hotels with 5 floors are now featuring in this list to be reverted to the original settlement status, which had less Floor Area Ratio. How does the TCP plan to deal with these structures which are already constructed, and have caused immense hardships to the villagers?” he added.
Former minister and Calangute MLA Michael Lobo said, "There is no setback as long as the hills of these villages are taken care of. The Parra Hill was marked as settlement zone up to 100 m in 2021, but the figure has been brought down to 30 m. During the Assembly, I had told the TCP Minister that some hills which were converted in Arpora should be treated as Orchard area. He had said that he has already taken note of it and promised that no hills would be allotted for conversion", Lobo said.
Lobo said that Parra was earlier brought under PDA because it is a very green village.
Premanand Diukar, president of the Calangute Constituency Forum said the ODP 2025 for Calangute and Candolim needs to be scrapped.
"We welcome the decision of the TCP Minister to remove Arpora, Nagoa and Parra from the planning area. However, the Outline Development Plan (ODP) 2025 for Calangute and Candolim should be given serious thought as it is a mess, and should be de-notified in public interest,” said Premanand Diukar, president of the Calangute Constituency Forum.
“Huge chunks of land within the No Development Zone of the CRZ were converted to settlement areas in Candolim through the ODP, but surprisingly, these are not featured in the list of lands to be reverted to orchard status,” said Mathias.
As a petitioner in the ODP case in the High Court, I had requested a meeting with the Minister and the TCP board-- but it has been two months now and I have neither received a response, nor has an appointment been set," said Mathias.