I refer to the front page news report ‘State seeks NITI Aayog’s help to prepare new RP 2041’ (Herald, November 13).
The National Capital Region (NCR) includes the States of Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. It is expected that NCR will be the most populous capital region in the world by 2030-31. The National Capital Region Planning Board (NCRPB) is in the process of finalising the Regional Plan-2041. The draft Regional Plan-2041 (draft NCR-RP-2041) was presented to NCR Planning Board and approved on October 12, 2021 for inviting objections and suggestions. Accordingly, the draft NCR-RP-2041 is likely to be finalised soon. The approved draft NCR-RP-2041 proposes to change the boundary of the region and the process of NCR delineation/revision is in progress. Draft NCR-RP-2041 places a key focus on multimodal connectivity across the NCR via air, road, rail, and inland waterway links.
The Dabolim airport was referred to as the existing Goa International Airport at Dabolim in the Information Memorandum (refer to APPENDIX- VII on page 111) of the Request for Qualification (RFQ) document dated October 3, 2014 for the development of Greenfield International Airport at Mopa. However, there was shocking information in the Mormugao Surface Utilisation Plan given in Appendix VII of the final report RPG-21 Regional Plan for Goa-2021 (Release three) issued by the State Level Committee for Regional Plan for Goa -2021. This plan showed the above referred Goa International Airport at Dabolim as a fully defence domestic airport without existing transportation connectivity to the civilian areas for the horizon year 2021.
Let me repeat. As soon as the hypothetical long-term draft master plan for Mopa Airport was prepared in the year 2012, there was excitement to have the Goa Vision Document-2035 in a hurry. Neither the Goa Metropolitan Region was defined in terms of the human population nor any land-use plans proposed for the horizon year 2035.
Without long-term sustainable land-use plans for Goa, the hidden multi-modal transportation infrastructure (including roads, railways, inland waterways, helicopters, etc) required for the viability of the proposed Greenfield International Airport at Mopa has the potential to promote rapid unwanted urbanisation. These massive development projects for unsustainable passenger and cargo transportation for the benefit of the neighbouring States and new migrant population will wipe out the unique identity and heritage of Goa.
I again refer to the undated Goa Development report of the Planning Commission, Government of India, first published as a book by Academic Foundation; New Delhi in the year 2011. This report prepared in collaboration with the Institute for Change Research, Panjim is available on the website of the Planning Commission of India/NITI Aayog along with the Development reports of 21 other States/Union Territories of India. The names of persons involved in the preparation of the Goa Development report are given on the Acknowledgements page (refer page 21).
The Goa Development Report highlights the release of the Dabolim Airport to the Naval authorities after the new Airport at Mopa takes shape and becomes operational (refer page 188).
Chapter 6 of the above referred Goa Development report is on infrastructure, transportation, logistics and integrated development. In section 2 (page 115), it is stated that within the next 25 years, about 4 million (40 lakh) new residents will come to Goa. Also, about 90% of those people (36 lakh) will settle in Panjim, Margao and Vasco. This implies that there could be three cities (Panjim, Margao and Vasco) in Goa, each with a population of more than 10 lakh new migrants.
Can the present geographical areas of Panjim, Margao and Vasco accommodate 36 lakh new migrants? Or are the new migrants going to settle in Goa by destroying the neighbouring villages, mainly in Tiswadi, Bardez, Salcete and Mormugao Talukas?
As per the above referred Herald news report, the Government has sought support from Aayog to prepare village level and municipal level Settlement Plans which are outside the purview of Planning and Development Authorities (PDAs). Is the new Regional Plan-2041 for achieving the objective for welcoming 40 lakh new residents (also called tourists) with village and municipal level settlement plans? Can the tiny villages and towns of Goa be compared to the National Capital Region? What is the carrying capacity of the small rural-urban State of Goa? Are there plans to create the Goa Metropolitan Region linked to the South Konkan Maharashtra Coastal Economic Zone with the New Regional Plan-2041 by adopting concepts similar to the concepts adopted for Regional Plan-2041 of National Capital Region? These questions need answers.
