The Town and Country Planning minister had to finally keep the Pernem Zoning Plan in abeyance following a determined resistance from locals. And now, the Chief Minister himself has to come forward to state that the decision regarding the respective plan will be taken only after consulting local MLAs and the people. However, the CM did not give any indication of scrapping the plan, while clarifying the government’s stance. Therefore, what exactly will the government be doing when they claim that the decision will be taken after confiding in locals? This question has been present in all the government projects.
Infact, does the government assure people before announcing new projects? The answer unfortunately is an emphatic ‘no’. The government’s idea of development is to draft plans and announce them without issuing any prior notices or intimating locals regarding the benefits and the drawbacks. Infact, the government sometimes initiates the work on the projects which serve as the notice in itself. Hence, whenever the announcements of such projects are made, a general public sentiment is that the authorities are forcefully imposing it on them leading to public uprising. Taking advantage of the heat of the situation, political leaders then add fuel to the fire to bake their own bread. Public tendency is always to lean towards something that is supporting them and the government then has to take a step back.
If the government at all plans on taking a decision on projects by earning peoples’ trust first, then why do they not show this smartness before announcing them? And even when the government assures of taking people into confidence, do they? Mere words are not deeds and so, the government must show their intentions through their actions. That is why on one hand people raise a valid question of how to trust the government while on the other, the government blames the protestors as a hurdle in the development of the State.
A fresh example of this is concretisation of Shitole Lake in Savoi Verem near Bhoot Khamb plateau. The sudden concretisation of this Kadamba-era natural water system which is at least a thousand years old, has led to water shortage in areas such as Sada, Kavangal and Karmate. Naturally, the agitated locals stopped the work. Their question was the lack of communication shown by the government before starting the work, consequences of which would have to be faced ultimately by the locals. In short, why do governments which always claim to take people into confidence, behave in such a way?
There are multiple such examples where the government has done the exact opposite. The stiff opposition shown by Sanguem locals against the proposed land for the upcoming IIT was one such instance. Now, the government has identified yet another site for IIT at Rivona. South Goa Collectorate has also issued a public notice regarding the same. If the government expects people to welcome the projects, then the government too should welcome the appropriate suggestions and changes received from people. Only then will people believe that the government is working for public welfare. However, no government ever adopts a development policy which takes into consideration potential public outcry. The elected leaders take their voters for granted because once elected to power, they do not have to worry for the next five years. It’s only when the elections approach, the government has to make decisions, such as suspending Pernem Zoning Plan, to pretend how much they care for people.
The taluka which now has an international airport but has remained relatively backward must develop. Do people not want development? Of course they do. Is it not possible to implement the projects if the government loses their stubborn attitude of being so unwelcoming towards peoples’ suggestions? Is communication not possible? Is it not according to the country’s Constitution? Unfortunately, none of the governments show enough humility to go the democratic way which is why such agitations persist. When there are affidavits about Goa’s ecosystem and biodiversity available to prove that Mhadei river is the State’s lifeline, why do the authorities not feel it is important to think about the proposed projects on the river?
Majority of the businesses today are firmly in the hands of non-Goans. Flattening of hills to erect luxury hotels and residential projects is considered to be a norm. The Department of Water Resources is planning to build dams wherever possible just to quench the thirst of 60 to 70 lakh tourists which visit the State annually. However, this will lead to irreparable damage to the natural water resources. Is the government serious about these issues? Or is it about temporarily playing a harp about taking people into confidence? The government needs to stop showing such carrots every now and then.
