VASCO: The Cansaulim Arossim Cuelim (CAC) villagers on Monday threatened to approach the court if the village Panchayat succumbs to the pressure of the building lobby and makes any move to grant construction licence to a mega project at Maddalen ward in Cansaulim.
According to the villagers, in the year 2014, the CAC gram sabha rejected the proposal of mega multi dwelling project having over 24 flats merely because there is no six metres road to the project. Similarly the village panchayat passed a resolution not to grant permission to the said proposed project.
“Besides the gram sabha, even the panchayat body adopted a resolution not to grant licences to the said project. Now we have got a document in which the PWD and land survey department had admitted in a RTI that they have no records of this road which was a rainstorm channel that was reclaimed and the width of the road is three and half metres. How can the VP body change its decision and now want to give permission to the project?” CAC villager Sheela Gracias questioned.
She further said that “with regards to mega project proposed on the same road, the villagers had earlier moved the High Court in a Writ Petition 843 of 2010 and it was ordered that projects had to be passed by the village keeping in mind public safety and ecological protection. Now we have heard that the panchayat body wants to give licence to the proposed project which was opposed by the villagers. This is highly objectionable and villagers are fully prepared to approach the court in filing a contempt petition against the panchayat if they grant permission imposing their will on the villagers,” said Sheela, a gram sabha member.
According to Sheela, she, being the complainant in the case, had approached all possible authorities of state administration including the secretary of public grievance cell and some inquiries were sought in the matter. She said that she was called for a personal hearing on Monday to discuss about the same project. She, however, refused to attend the said hearing and officially requested the panchayat secretary to furnish documents including legal opinion taken by the panchayat from the advocate who is pursuing the said matter.
“Issues such as basic infrastructure like sewage, interrupted power and water supply are causing strain on the villagers and such mega projects would put more pressure on the existing infrastructure in the village. We will be writing to the government about the unauthorised personal hearing conducted this (Monday) morning and will move the appropriate judicial court for action against the panchayat,” she told.
