It’s been almost 12 years since the Corporation of the City of Panaji (CCP) has been writing to Defence Ministry requesting them to return a 1.22 acre property currently in ownership of the Military Headquarters-Panjim in order to utilise the land for multi-level car parking.
Panjim City, which is currently facing major traffic congestion in way, could have benefited to a large extent and would have also solved parking problem, but the proposal has been held up, as the Defence Ministry has still not given consent to transfer the land back to the CCP.
In the year 2014, CCP had taken a resolution that space in Panjim market, currently occupied by the Army for their 2 Signal Training Centre (2STC) be returned to the Corporation of the City of Panaji (CCP) to whom it actually belongs, in which a multi level car parking could be constructed to decongest the city traffic.
Currently it is under-utilised parking facility for military vehicles which prevents locals from parking their vehicles even outside the premises. The land is approximately 4,969 sq mts in size, which is enough for constructing a multi level car park.
In a recent development, the State government had decided to have an “amicable” proposal on taking over land in the Panjim municipal market, presently occupied by the Military for their 2 Signal Training Centre (STC), ensuring that the proposals gives relief to both military and government, but that process also seems to have vanished.
Speaking to Herald, CCP Surendra Furtado stated that the first letter by him as Mayor was sent on September 6, 2013 to the then Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar and Union Defence Minister (former) A K Antony, requesting the vacation of the military from the area. However, he failed to get any response.
“In November 2014, when Parrikar took over as the Defence Minister, I again wrote to him informing him to transfer the land back to the corporation, but the only response I got from the ministry was that they had received my request and that he has noted the contents of the letter and was having the matter looked into,” said Furtado.
“If he cannot do it being the Defence Minister and former Chief Minister of Goa, then who can do it?” he added.
Stating the CCP had also agreed for a land deal, wherein the defence would be given similar land space at Curca in Bambolim and moreover after the multi level car park project would be commissioned, all defence vehicles could be parked there free of cost, but there is no response from the Ministry.
Furtado also expressed dissatisfaction, as it’s been many years and there has not been any solution on this matter, which could have helped the citizens of Panjim city in a major way and would have helped to decongest the city roads and parking areas around the city.
“Prior to the liberation of Goa in 1961, the land was in the possession of the erstwhile Camara Municipal de Goa, which was later converted to Panjim Municipal Council and now known as CCP. Since 2004, the CCP has been fighting to take over the land which is 4,969 sq mts in size to utilise for the multi-storey car parking in a bid to decongest the city,” the Mayor said.
