The Goa government has sought to quell mounting concerns over the Hospet–Vasco double tracking project by issuing a formal clarification that no expansion of coal trans portation capacity will be permitted in the state. The clarification followed a recent tweet from Indian Railways touting the pro ject’s benefits, including faster coal movement, and a notification from the Un ion Railways Ministry an nouncing the acquisition of 6,007 square metres of land in Cansaulim, Sancoale and Issorcim villages in Mor mugao taluka.
The develop ment reignited long-stand ing fears among opposition parties, environmental ac tivists, and residents that the double tracking was designed to serve coal com panies at the cost of Goans. In a press note released on Tuesday, the govern ment stressed that the ac quisition is limited to 0.6 hectares and, as clarified by Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL), is solely intended to stabilize embankments near homes, provide road access to landowners and correct alignment mis matches identified in ear lier surveys.
It further ar gued that the project would enhance tourism and im prove the movement of existing freight, including coal, by reducing transit times and thereby lower ing incidental pollution. The note concluded with a categorical assurance: “No capacity expansion of coal transportation will be per mitted in the State.” But the State govern ment’s clarification has not eased public anxiety. Locals said RVNL has repeatedly failed to demonstrate that the project will benefit near by communities, pointing instead to years of hardships caused by railway work.
Access to homes has been blocked, drainage systems have been damaged leading to flooding in the monsoons, and mud has been dumped on private property without consent. These experiences, residents argue, undermine official claims that land ac quisition and engineering work are being undertak en to safeguard houses and improve infrastructure for locals. Villagers also dismissed the government’s assertion that double tracking is aimed at boosting passenger ser vices and tourism. According to them, there is little evi dence of demand for addi tional passenger trains, and the single track has proven sufficient. They said they have checked for themselves how few passenger tickets are sold at local counters, while observing coal wag ons dominate the line almost every day. This heavy freight movement, they added, is al ready exacting a serious toll. Homes situated close to the tracks now bear cracks in their walls from the constant vibration of wagons, while coal dust has worsened air quality and left many resi dents with respiratory and other health problems. For families who live cheek by jowl with the railway line, the prospect of increased freight traffic is a nightmare rather than a promise of pro gress. These grievances are com pounded by what villagers describe as a pattern of dis regard.
Some households feel effectively landlocked, unable to move freely be cause of blocked access caused by railway construc tion. Others say their repeat ed complaints about noise and dust have been ignored. Many believe the authorities are downplaying the scale of the project by present ing piecemeal land acquisi tions as isolated necessities rather than part of a larger expansion agenda. For op ponents, the government’s clarifications appear to be an attempt at reassurance with out addressing these lived realities. Activists have been vocal in amplifying these concerns. Goenchea Ramponkarancho Ekvott (GRE) General Sec retary Olencio Simoes de scribed the land acquisition in Cansaulim and Velsao as “a clear high-handedness of the South Western Railway” and evidence of disregard for public opposition. He reminded that both village panchayats had passed res olutions against the project, yet the railways continued to press ahead. “Cansaulim already has two tracks and this will be the third. It shows utter disregard for the senti ments of the people,” Simoes said, accusing the railway of having carried out illegal work in areas it later sought to acquire. Warning that homes in the Kadamba area could be lost, he urged the government to scrap the pro ject entirely, arguing it was driven by the coal industry rather than local needs. Goencho Ekvott (GE) founder member Orville Dourado Rodrigues sharp ened the critique by ques tioning why no Environ mental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) had been conducted before land acquisition began, despite the project being declared a “special railway project.”
He stressed that an ESIA is crucial to assess the environ mental, social, and economic consequences of such in frastructure and to propose mitigation measures within defined timelines. Rodrigues accused SWR and RVNL of deliberately splitting acqui sitions into smaller parcels to avoid triggering ESIA re quirements, with the latest 6,000 square metre acquisi tion possibly being the sixth such move. “This is a fraud played on the people of Goa, abetted by the state government,” he said, demanding that Chief Minister Dr Pramod Sawant explain why the ESIA was not conducted for the Goa sector of the project. Rodrigues added that they will study the planned acqui sition as well. The clash of perspectives has left the double tracking project in a deep credibility crisis. While the government frames it as a step toward safer infrastructure and improved connectivity, res idents and activists see it as a thinly veiled attempt to ce ment Goa’s role as a coal cor ridor.
With cracks appearing in houses, health deteriorat ing from pollution, and com munities sidelined in deci sion-making, the assurances of “no capacity expansion” ring hollow to those who live in the shadow of the tracks. As the project advances, the gulf between official claims and ground realities only appears to be widening, with trust eroding further each time a new parcel of land is acquired.