Team herald
MARGAO: The order to demolish the illegal hutments in Rumdamol, Davorlim could not be executed on Thursday as the Executive Magistrate was absent. The demolition has been postponed indefinitely.
The panchayat had sent a show-cause notice to the huts’ occupants on May 6, to which they could not give a satisfactory reply. The situation at the demolition site became tense when a woman tried to set herself on fire. However, Maina-Curtorim police stopped her. She was detained and released in the evening. The situation then got bizarre. When news of the demolition’s cancellation broke, locals who were pro-demolition started building their own huts.
“When we went to the panchayat to ask for clarification, they told us that the area is not in their jurisdiction; it is in comunidade area. So we went to the comunidade to get relief, but now suddenly they come for the demolition. It is not fair on the panchayat’s part. The panchayat allows two storey constructions for the rich people, but we poor people have nowhere to go,” said a resident.
Sarpanch Turki Mamtaz said, “It is the panchayat’s decision to remove these hutments, and the people too want this removed. The people are threatening that they will build illegal hutments if these are allowed to stay.”
With more than 100 illegal hutments and scrap yards, tackling the situation will be problematic for the panchayat.
