Team Herald
“The ministry has said the venue cannot be shifted this year as Defexpo is for four days. Changing the venue would be embarrassing. The event has participation from many defence companies from across the world,” Parsekar told reporters, after chairing a meeting of BJP MLAs on Saturday evening.
The latest written communiqué from the Defence Secretary was shown to the MLAs during the closed-door meeting. “The secretary has written that changing the venue will be an embarrassment,” Parsekar reiterated.
The chief minister, in his last meeting for the year 2015 had said that permission has been granted to the ministry to use the Goa Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC) land to hold DefExpo 2016 for four days only.
He had also not ruled out the possibility of converting it into a permanent venue for DefExpo and Aero Shows as he hinted that Goa could sign a MoU with the Union Ministry on use of land.
The exposition is scheduled to be held from March 28 to 31 at Naqueri village in Betul. The project has run into trouble with various locals and activists opposing handing over the land for such a purpose.
After the Association of Componentes of Comunidades lodged a complaint with CBI, Goa alleging the State government has fraudulently grabbed the land; NGO Generation Next accused the State of bypassing GIDC on the matter and misguiding the people on the issue.
