MARGAO: Notwithstanding the High Court order dismissing the plea of grassroots petitioners that permission from local bodies in Goa should be taken before doing any work of railway double racking from Vasco to Kulem, the petitioners have decided to challenge the order.
Responding to the verdict, Felix Furtado, who had filed the petition on behalf of Ganv Bhavancho Ekvott (GBE), explained that once they receive a copy of the order, they will challenge the same in a higher court.
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“We were challenging the refusal of the SWR and Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL) to obtain prior permissions under various Central and State statutes with respect to illegal and destructive work of railway line double tracking,” Furtado explained.
“I can only express my disappointment at the outcome of the well-documented and researched case. The judges have relied only on Section 11 of the Railways Act, 1989. Nowhere in the Act is it mentioned that the Railways are exempted from obtaining prior permissions from the various Central and State statutes. The interpretation was against us,” Felix added.
It may be recalled that Felix and other GBE members are also a part of the NGO Goyant Kollso Naka (GKN), which has been protesting against the railway double tracking project for the last couple of years.
On Wednesday, the Bench heard arguments in connection with the petitions that had been filed by the NGO Ganv Bhavancho Ekvott (GBE) and some residents of Guirdolim and Chandor, who had prayed that the South Western Railway (SWR) be directed to obtain permissions under all Central and State laws.
The petitioners had pointed out that the double tracking work had no permission from the panchayat, Town and Country Planning, Goa Coastal Zone and Management Authority, Water Resources Department, and other State authorities and hence the said work should be stopped.
However, the counsel for the State government argued that railway expansion work is exempted from taking permissions from local authorities under ‘The Railways Act. The High Court found merit in the government’s argument and hence the petition was dismissed. These hearings were held over three consecutive days.
