Team Herald
VALPOI: The villagers of Ansulem and the Bhironda Panchayat have demanded that the government demolish the 20 illegal houses constructed in Ansulem forest.
According to the villagers, the houses have been built by cutting down forest trees.
Most of these houses have got power and water connections without NOC of the local panchayat. The villagers allege that all these illegal houses have been constructed by non-Goans from Karnataka, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.
The villagers further allege that the people who constructed these illegal houses are supported by a former councilor of the Valpoi Municipality and the councilor in turn is supported by a very powerful political leader.
The villagers also have accused the Valpoi Forest Office of turning a blind eye to the illegal constructions, despite the villagers bringing the same to the notice of the officers concerned.
The villagers complained that while the forest officers ignore illegal constructions on forest land, they harass the sons of the soil since the village falls under the wildlife sanctuary.
“The illegal houses are getting 24-hour water supply, but the real Goan people are not getting such supply. I feel that, in future, Ansulem will become another Moti Dongor. The Forest Department doesn’t have any control over these people. Soon they will become vote bank,” social worker Prashant Desai said.
The constructions done in the Ansulem forest comes under the Bhirondem Panchayat. No permission has been obtained from Bhirondem Panchayat for constructing the houses. We will take action on them. We also will inform the Valpoi Forest Office about the same,” Bhironda Sarpanch Nitin Shivdekar said.
Valpoi Forest Officer, Deepak Tandel, RFO when contacted by Herald refused to comment.
