PANJIM: The High Court of Bombay at Goa on Tuesday issued notices to the State government and the Town and Country Planning (TCP) Department in an amended Public Interest Litigation (PIL) writ petition filed by three individuals challenging the Section 17 (2) of TCP Act, 1974.
During the hearing, the High Court also impleaded two parties – M/s Gangareddy Infra Private Limited and Konidela Ramchjaran Tej as respondents, who were also present in the High Court along with their lawyers.
Both these impleaders had applied to the TCP in March 2023 under Section 17, Sub-Section 2 of TCP Act for correction of inconsistent /incoherent zoning provisions in the Regional Plan 2021 and changed it from Orchard Zone to Settlement Zone at Morjim.
Three public-spirited Goans Pravinsingh Shedgaonkar of Betim, Mayur Shetgaonkar of Morjim and Swapnesh Sherlekar of Bicholim have filed a PIL writ petition praying to strike down Section 17 and Sub-Section 2 of Goa TCP Act, 1974. They have also prayed to strike down the alternations and modifications made in the Regional Plan for rectifying errors and correction of inconsistent/incoherent zoning proposals Rules 2023.
The petitioner have also prayed that the Chief Town Planner (CTP) be directed to immediately inspect the properties at Morjim, where huge strata of land admeasuring 64,000 square metres have been converted from Orchard to Settlement and to submit the report to the Court.
The petitioners have stated that despite their complaints to the government to remove the illegal road and to initiate action as per law, the government authorities granted permissions for construction of farmhouses considering the illegality-constructed road as the right to way for those project sites.
The petitioners have also brought to the notice of the court that Section 17 (2) of the TCP Act does not provide for any public consultation before the government makes any changes in the Regional Plan. Such an arbitrary conversion would lead to rampant and unbalanced development in the State and have prayed that the order issued by the CTP dated April 19, 2023, be quashed and set aside.
The Court said that another petition filed by Goa Foundation will be clubbed and will be heard on July 24.
