Team Herald
MARGAO: Goyant Kollso Naka (GKN) has condemned the allegedly baseless and misleading statements made at the Press Conference held by the Power and Environment Minister of Goa and other MLAs on behalf of the State Government.
GKN said that the Government is not just making baseless and false statements to mislead the people, but also contradicts itself, while revealing its servitude to the coal lobby.
“The Environment Minister has not contested any of the documents produced by GKN in evidence of the plans to make Goa a coal hub. In fact, he admits the authenticity of the Sagarmala documents that show that 137 MTPA of coal is planned to be transported through MPT, our rivers, our villages and our forests. These documents also reveal that the double tracking of the South Western Railway (SWR) is only for increase in coal transportation. The Government is contradicting itself by saying on one hand that they will not allow the coal transportation through Goa to increase, while also insisting on continuing with the illegal construction of the second track, which is purely for coal transportation” pointed out GKN.
GKN claimed that the construction of the second track is illegal not just because the Railways Ministry has ordered all such works to be stopped, or that the Panchayat permissions are not obtained, but also because no permissions are obtained for the works in Mollem National Park, and the fact that Karnataka Forest Department has declared that the land required for double tracking in the Kali Tiger Reserve is inviolable.
“He (Cabral) has said that the double tracking through Mollem National Park will take about 4-5 years due to the difficult terrain. If so, there is no logic in rushing with the double tracking works at Davorlim and bringing thousands of people on the tracks and jeopardizing public Health and safety, for which only the Government is responsible,” said GKN.
“He tries to appease the people by saying that the present coal handling might continue for some time, yet he make an outlandish proposal that the entire railway line will be covered with a dome to prevent pollution due to coal dust! He further exposes his real intentions when he states that no one can stop the infrastructure works. This means that the Government wants to continue to work for the coal lobby, for whom tens of thousands of crores of our money is being spent for the double tracking, national highways and other coal infrastructure works. Obviously, once the infrastructure is in place, no one can stop the coal plans of Adani, Vedanta and Jindal” alleged GKN.
GKN decried the statements being made by the Environment Minister without a single supporting document being placed before the Public till date. In contrast, GKN has been submitting all the Government documents to the Government since over 5 months, none of which are contested by the Government. “For example, the Government is bound by policy to stop handling coal at MPT and convert it into a green/ passenger port for cruise tourism. This implies that the existing single track will carry only 4 or 5 rakes rather than the present 15 rakes, releasing ample capacity for expansion of railway services for another hundred years. Obviously, the second track is not required, unless coal transportation is to be increased. Similarly, the target of 358 MW of solar power to be achieved by the Goa Government by 2022 means that the transmission lines are definitely not required” said GKN.
The GKN reiterated that entire population of Goa is convinced, in the absence of a satisfactory response from the Government – that the double tracking and other infrastructure projects are against the interests of the Nation and the people.
“In this situation, it is most important that the Government must immediately stop all double tracking works. If the Government fails to revoke the orders of the Collector, South Goa permitting road closure at Davorlim railway crossing on the night of November 8, thousands of Goans will be forced again to exercise their constitutional duty to protect the future generations from the blind greed of a few. All consequences of the failure of the Government to pay heed to logic, peoples wishes and public interest will be solely the responsibility of the Government” warned GKN.
