MARGAO: Even as Goenchea Ramponkarancho Ekvott (GRE) President Agnelo Rodrigues accused the BJP government of not honouring the promises made to their late leader Matanhy Saldanha and opined that the Sagarmala project was detrimental to Goa his widow MLA Alina Saldanha said she would comment on this matter at a later date.
Speaking to media persons after garlanding Matanhy’s statue at Cansaulim on his 70th birth anniversary, Agnelo said Matanhy had joined the BJP only because Manohar Parrikar has agreed to his 26 point demand and lamented that not a single demand has been fulfilled till date.
He said instead the fields, hills, rivers and environment that Matanhy loved so much is being destroyed by the present government that is bringing mega projects in the State even though Matanhy was promised that such projects would not be allowed.
“The BJP had promised Matanhy that there would be no double tracking of the railway line, Goa would be given special status, no fishing by trawlers within 5 kms of the coastline, non Goans would not be permitted to purchase Goan land but none of these have happened,” he said.
He said that even those who were opposed to Matanhy during his lifetime are today missing him and saying that things would have been different if he was there. “Nobody would have dared using formalin in fish if Matanhy was there as his very presence was a enough of a deterrent,” he said.
GRE General Secretary Olencio Simoes said the BJP was adopting an anti-people and anti-environment stance and named the sagarmala project to be one such project and also pointed out that the government was seeking to dilute the Coastal Regulation Zone.
He appealed to Alina Saldanha who is the chairperson of the Goa Rehabilitation Board to immediately rehabilitate the families who were living in the 15 houses demolished at Baina and said others whose houses are earmarked for demolition should also be rehabilitated.
