Regularise temple, demand Rumdamol villagers
HERALD REPORTER
MARGAO, JAN 9
The gram sabha of Rumdamol Village Panchayat on Sunday has resolved to ask the government to regularise the Shri Swami Samarth Temple in the Housing Board.
A resolution tabled by a lady gram sabha member requested the authorities to regularise the temple as per the resolution adopted by the Panchayat in 2008 as a special case to bring peace and harmony in the village.
The resolution asked the Panchayat body to forward the decision taken by the gram sabha to the Town and Country Planning department for necessary action.
Announcing the passing of the resolution unanimously, deputy Sarpanch Damu Naik, while addressing the meeting, clarified that the Panchayat is not against the temple, but said the Panchayat body was forced to issue the demolition notice as per the correspondence from the Deputy Director of Panchayats, South.
“The Deputy Director of Panchayats pressurised the Panchayat to issue the demolition notice or face dissolution of the body. We had only followed the process. The panchayat members are not at all against the temple and will stand by the villagers to get the religious structure regularized”, he said.
Naik appealed to the villagers and the gram sabha members to united make a strong case before the government for the regularisation of the temple and assured the Panchayat’s full support for the regularisation. “No one in the village and outside should think that the Panchayat is against the temple or has worked against the temple”, Naik said, and recalled the letter made by the Panchayat body to the Goa Housing Board in the past to get the temple regularised.
Making an appeal to the temple committee to cooperate in the process to regularise the temple, Naik said “Let us together ensure that the temple is regularized”.
Former Sarpanch and Panch member Ulhas Tuemkar said the government has the powers to regularise the temple since the religious structure falls in an open space.
Stating that the government had in the past regularised a hotel in Bambolim despite Supreme Court order for its demolition, Tuemkar said the government should come out with an ordinance to save the Shri Swami Samarth Temple from demolition.
Assuring the villagers that the Panchayat would not demolish the temple, Tuemkar said the Panchayat would soon write to the Governor, Chief Minister, local MLA and PWD Minister, besides the Chief Secretary to get the temple regularised.
