Team Herald
MARGAO: Agriculture Minister Vijai Sardessai and Revenue Minister Rohan Khaunte have revealed their plans for a possible legislation banning sale of agricultural lands to non-agricultural entities or persons.
The ministers disclosed their plans at a government function in Margao on Thursday.
Khaunte told the function that there were plans to ban sale of agriculture land in Goa to non-agriculturists. He said that if the process is completed, the ban may be legislated by the 40 MLAs in the assembly soon.
Explaining the reasons for such a ban, Khaunte said that the idea is to keep the lands preserved for posterity and for betterment of the State. “The legislation to protect agriculture land is an idea to avoid and completely stop the sale of agricultural land to non-Goans after which the nature of the use of land changes resulting in reduction in tilled land in Goa,” he said.
Vijai said, “This is our honest attempt to keep the Goenkarponn in the State alive as when our fields and biodiversity will be preserved, Goenkarponn too will be preserved. Today the problem is not conversion but the increasing loss of agricultural land to non-Goans and not agricultural persons which needs to be curbed.”
On contract farming, Vijai said that the norms of contract farming in Goa and other States can’t be similar as in other States only the agriculture department is concerned, whereas in Goa since there is the Tenancy Act it becomes responsibility of the Agriculture as well as the Revenue Department.
The ministers said that they are trying to get the legislation passed in the ensuing assembly session and only after all the related departments finalise the draft it would be placed before the House.
