According to villagers people are not against the IT Park in Chimbel, but have taken a stand against it only to bring to the attention of the authorities the lack of development in the village for the last 40 years. They defend this by saying this is the only opportunity for the villagers to protest and raise their voice against the injustice towards their village.
“There is no health centre, no market, no ground, nothing in the village. People will hesitate if such a big development project (IT Park) comes,” local resident Rakesh Kandolkar said. He said that the locals are demanding a proper market as today vendors sit next to the road, with even fisherwomen selling their fish sitting on the roadside.
The government has acquired 3 lakh sq mtrs of land for the IT Park at Chimbel and the land has been in possession of the government for a couple of years. However, the Panchayat is also not opposing the IT Park, but is supporting the locals in their demands.
Chimbel Sarpanch Shobhan Borkar said the Panchayat has not received any communication from the government regarding the IT Park but opposition arises after villagers have read about the park in news reports.
Chimbel residents also face an acute water shortage and sanitation facilities, and Borkar said that these two concerns should be addressed first.
The list of the demands is long, as the villagers want a market complex, police out post, health centre, ground and community hall in the village.
