CALANGUTE: The Calangute locals have alleged that illegal land-filling is being carried out in a beachside property belonging to the department of tourism at Gauravaddo, Calangute, with the authorities turning a blind eye.
Activists and locals said they have filed complaints with the Goa Coastal Zone Management Authority (GCZMA), department of tourism, Calangutevillage panchayat and others, despite which the land-filling using construction debris is still being carried out barely 50metres from the hightide line (HTL) in violation of Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) rules.
“At least 20 truckloads of construction waste has been dumped on land which belongs to the tourism department by the owner of a neighbouring property to create a parking area for his hotel. The dumping is happening in eco-sensitive beach area which has disturbed the sand dunes and beach vegetation. The dumping activity has also resulted in landfilling of the low-lying area in order to make an illegal parking area. This has been going on for several days,” a resident said.
The villagers recently caught a truck driver, who had come to dump construction debris at the spot and handed him over to the Calangute police. The truck was also seized by police.
