Team Herald
SANGUEM: The fears of the locals opposing the proposed IIT project at Cotarli village in Sanguem came true with the land sharks kicking off their business inviting buyers by making small plots of land available for sale within the site.
While on one hand, the farmers are agitating all day by keeping their work aside for over two months, the land sharks on the other hand have made the land available for sale within one-kilometre from the proposed site.
It is pertinent to note that when the government had announced its intention of setting up the IIT project at Sanguem and that too at the same place, it was rejected when Prasad Gaonkar was the MLA. The farmers and the other environment conscious citizens had raised concerns that despite stiff opposition if project sees the light of the day then it would by and large benefit the land sharks and the politicians and not the locals.
Going through an advertisement which found its way in a local newspaper, invites are sent for prospective buyers on the availability of small plots of land within a kilometre from the proposed IIT site. The advert also claims it to be a lucrative opportunity for investment purpose.
The advertisement which caught attention of the social media had varied remarks with a group saying, “IIT secrets revealed. It is a big land scam. IIT in Sanguem is to open virgin land in Sanguem for sale. Many politicians must have invested in land and now will sell the same for crores of rupees in the name of IIT.”
The farmers who are opposing the project on the pristine agricultural land in Sanguem have also echoed similar sentiments.
They were quick to recall the past deeds of Sanguem MLA Subhash Phal Dessai as during his last term he had proposed a beer manufacturing factory at a coconut grove in Ambdoi village on the banks of the Sanguem River.
The villagers from Ambdoi however stood firm and got the project shunted out of Sanguem.
This time around, the situation is no different. At any cost in the name of development, Phal Dessai wants the IIT project to come up in Sanguem despite stiff resistance from the farming community, locals said.
Constancio Mascarenhas, a farmer said, “There is a vacant land admeasuring around 60,000 square metres within a kilometre from the proposed site. The land allegedly belongs to the ancestors of a politician from South Goa. The land was for sale for past several years but has remained unsold till date.”
The farmers claim that the land sharks now appear to be taking advantage of the proposed IIT site to sell land in and around Sanguem. The land deal is just like what happened when Mopa Greenfield Airport was announced. The reality behind the scenario and the land deals will be known within a short span of time.
