PANJIM: The High Court of Bombay at Goa has directed the Directorate of Survey and Land Records to depute competent surveyors to carry out the survey to determine the status of encroachments, if any, on the Comunidade of Serula land and to file a detailed report to the North Goa Administrator of Comunidades, Mapusa, within next eight months.
The Court suggested that the reports can be made in stages or in part so that the Administrator of Comunidades can proceed with the action under Articles 371 and 372 of the Code of Comunidades and the Goa Land (Prohibition on Construction) Act, 1995. The Administrator of Comunidades has also been asked to act based upon the petitioner’s complaints read with such reports and take action under Articles 371 and 372 of the Code of Comunidades and under the Goa Land (Prohibition on Construction) Act, 1995.
The Administrator has been further asked to dispose the complaints within four months from the receipt of the report/s submitted by the Directorate of Survey and Land Records.
The High Court was hearing a writ petition filed by Comunidade of Serula attorney Peter Martins regarding several encroachments on its land.
Arguing on behalf of the petitioner, Adv Yogesh Nadkarni pointed out that complaints were made to the Administrator of Comunidades to take action under Articles 371 and 372 of the Code of Comunidade so as to remove such encroachments. However, no effective action was taken.
To this, Advocate General Devidas Pangam told the Court that before taking any action, a detailed survey was necessary to ascertain the status of alleged encroachments. He said that the Communidade was informed that it should undertake such a survey so that the Administrator would be in a position to take effective action under Articles 371 and 372 of the Code of Comunidades, if found necessary. Since the Communidade of Serula did not carry out this exercise, the matter could not proceed further.
Following this, the Comunidade of Serula agreed to deposit Rs 1 lakh within next 15 days to undertake survey work and will make further payments to the Directorate of Survey and Land Records as and when demanded.
