Flying squads to swoop on illegal hill cutters
HERALD REPORTER
PANJIM, MAY 3
Bowing to pressure from Goa Bachao Abhiyan (GBA) and village groups, the Goa government on Monday decided to constitute two flying squads headed by deputy collectors for responding to calls on illegal hill-cutting and filling of low-lying land in North and South Goa districts separately.
This decision was taken at a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Digambar Kamat and attended by Secretary (Town and Planning) Raajiv Yadhuvanshi who is also secretary to the CM, Chief Town Planner, Morad Ahmad, Nodal Officer, Regional Plan, Sanjit Rodrigues and Deputy Town Planner Vinod Kumar, according to an official press statement issued here.
It was primarily a stock-taking meeting on the actions proposed to be taken by the government after the structured meeting held in the Secretariat on April 21 in which various issues dogging the state pertaining to town and country planning, were deliberated.
One of the main three demands made at the meeting held 12 days ago, was a public announcement of the “flying squad” with contact details of the person[s] responsible to stop all violations, including on non-working and holidays for the Goa administration.
In Monday’s meeting though the decision to set up district-level `flying squads’ has been taken, the modalities are yet to be finalised. “The nitty-gritty is to be seen for effective implementation”, said a member of GBA when contacted. “It is not just the question of responding to the calls on illegal hill-cutting and filling of low lying lands, but the stress should be on stopping such activities.”
The other two demands which were placed before Yadhuvanshi at the secretariat meeting, included public announcement of the freeze on development in the NDZ (no development zone) and ESZ (eco sensitive zone) including cultivable paddy fields, steep hill slopes, mangroves, creeks etc and holding all NOCs and permissions under amended Section 16 & 16 A of TCP Act in abeyance till the finalization of RP 2021.
On Monday, the government also decided to constitute a special committee having legal experts under the chairmanship of commissioner and secretary (TCP) to review the TCP Act, 1974 amended from time to time.
This follows strong objection raised by GBA and others to the appointment of Deputy Speaker Mauvin Godinho as the chairman of the committee.
The government has also decided to release additional funds and appointed technical assistants for expeditiously completion of the Regional Plan-2021. Further the government decided to respond to the various advertisements through media giving the wrong picture of the projects approved as and when brought to the notice of the government.
The government has constituted a committee for safeguarding the Eco-Sensitive concept, the official press release concluded.
