CANACONA: Distressed villagers from Cotigao and Gaondongrim met with officials from the Water Supply Department and the Irrigation Department to address the stalled construction of a water tank at Gavane-Karve. This tank is intended to supply water to their villages, but the project has been delayed for seven years due to land acquisition issues.
The officials explained that the construction of a tank on the Karve hilltop was proposed to provide water to the two villages. However, progress has been hindered because no landowner has been willing to give a No Objection Certificate (NOC) for constructing the tank on their land, despite the completion of the dam seven years ago.
To resolve this issue, it was decided to approach the Mallikarjun Devasthan for permission to use their land for the tank construction.
The villagers, led by panch members Dashrath Gaonkar, Anand Velip, former Sarpanch Datta Gaonkar, Gaspar Coutinho, and INDIA Bloc leader Vikas Bhagat, expressed their frustration over the delay. Former Sarpanch Datta Gaonkar criticised the government for the prolonged delay, noting that the land provided by the Irrigation Department to the Water Supply Department is insufficient.
“While around 4,000 square metres is required to construct the tank and the filtering plant, only about 1,000 square metres has been provided,” Gaonkar said.
