CM assures to rehabilitate Khariwaddo locals

PANJIM, FEB 1
Chief Minister Digambar Kamar on Tuesday assured the House that the government would work out a solution along with Mormugao Port Trust (MPT) to rehabilitate residents of Khariwaddo, Vasco who are slapped with show cause notices by the Mormugao Municipal Council (MMC).
He  made the statement while replying to a “Calling Attention” motion tabled by Curtorim MLA Reginaldo Lourenco along with Opposition Leader Manohar Parrikar, Mormugao MLA Milind Naik and Siolim MLA Dayanand Mandrekar.
The chief minister said various options have been considered and that he also had a meeting with the new MPT chairman to work out a solution.
“The MPT has been sent a clear message by the Central government that it cannot have separate existence undermining the interest of Goa,” the chief minister told the House as some MLAs were sceptical about MPT’s willingness to cooperate with the State government due to high-handed manner in which earlier chairman of the MPT had handled the issue.
He said that he had a detailed discussion with the MPT chairman about the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed in the past about rehabilitation of Khariwaddo residents.
The MPT claims that most residents of Khari waddo are illegal occupants and wants them to vacate the area as it has plans to expand the port facilities.
The MPT went to High Court when it discovered that neither MMC nor the Goa Coastal Zone Management Authority (GCZMA) was responding to its request.
On the other hand the residents of Khariwaddo claim that they are traditional fishermen and cannot be shunted out from Khariwaddo.
On the direction of the High Court, MMC has identified 363 structures which do not have licence from the municipal council required under Municipalities Act.
The High Court in its order on December 13, 2010 had directed MMC to take further action pertaining to final notices served and in view of its earlier order that it should demolish illegal structures, except 30 structures of which demolition has been stayed by the Municipal Appellate Tribunal, and file the compliance report by February 15, 2011.