AUGUSTO RODRIGUES
For the first time since its inception, the Gov ernment of Goa has re-rec ommended the names of four expert members from the previous Goa Coastal Zone Management Author ity (GCZMA) to the newly constituted body. Their first major task will be to noti fy the crucial Coastal Zone Management Plan (CZMP) after public consideration. “The government has sent the names to the Cen tre for appointment. Once approved and notified, the newly constituted GCZMA will start work. I am not aware when the new com mittee will be notified,” said Sachin Desai, Secretary of GCZMA. Of the 5 expert committee members in the previous GCZMA, four — Ganesh Velip, Dr Dilip B Arolkar, Sushant S Naik, and the representative of the NGO M/s Study and Awareness of Wildlife and Environment — have been re-recommended. The only member not re-nominated is Radha B Rao. The outgoing GCZMA held a total of 170 sittings, beginning on January 16, 2023, and ending on De cember 24, 2025, with its tenure overlapping until December 26, 2025. In a Legislative Assem bly Question (LAQ No 013) raised by Curtorim MLA Aleixo Lourenco, Chief Min ister Pramod Sawant dis closed that the NGO expert member — now re-recom mended — had not attend ed a single meeting of the previous authority during its three-year-term. A Google search for M/s Study and Awareness of Wildlife and Environment yields no direct results identifying such an NGO. The address listed for the organisation in the LAQ is: House No 9/17/56, Shrin iwas, near the LIC Office, Khadpabandh, Ponda, Goa. The last GCZMA fre quently made headlines for the wrong reasons, facing repeated criticism from the Goa Bench of the Bombay High Court for failing to enforce its own demolition orders. The authority was also fined multiple times by the National Green Tribu nal (NGT) for non-compli ance with its directives. “I don’t think the body is of any use anymore. It has become part of the illegal construction lobby in CRZ ar eas,” said Claude Alvares, Di rector of the Goa Foundation.
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“The expert members don’t even seem to know who is writing what. We once came across an order that was simply a repeat of something already published,” Alvares added. In January 2026, the NGT imposed a penalty of Rs 50,000 on the GCZMA for repeatedly seeking time to file replies in a sand-mining case pending since August 2025. The tri bunal also expressed disbelief that the authority issued show-cause notices to six jetties that were already ordered sealed by the NGT for CRZ violations. “The old members did no good for our environment. Reappointing them shows the government’s inclination to make matters worse,” said Judith Almeida of the Colva Civ ic and Consumer Forum, which has repeatedly challenged GCZMA decisions. “They must have paid huge fines im posed by courts and tribunals—and ultimately, it’s public money.” Almeida said the authority’s biggest failing is its inability to take cases to their logical conclusion. “Why would a body that orders demolition remain silent for years?” she asked. Activists also question why illegal structures are allowed to continue commercial activities instead of being sealed pending demolition. According to environmental activist Mayur Shetgaonkar, “The GCZMA is a body dressed up by the government to suit its needs. Given a free hand, some members are capa ble of protecting nature, but the government keeps filling the basket with rotten apples.” Sabita Mascarenhas of the Goa Bachao Abhiyan (GBA) recalled procedural lapses as well. “Once, we received a no tice a day after the meeting had already taken place,” she said. There is widespread opposition to the draft CZMP 2019, which the new GCZMA will be required to notify. The plan is currently being debated in several Gram Sabhas across South Goa. “How the new committee handles this could well decide how the ruling party will perform in the forthcoming As sembly elections,” Mascarenhas said.
