PANJIM: The finalisation and implementation of the long-awaited land use plan-Regional Plan 2021 (RP21) is likely to be delayed as the Manohar Parrikar-led coalition government might undo what its predecessor has done so far for the rectifications of the plan.
The State government has now decided to design the RP based on the concept paper that is currently being finalised by the Town and Country Planning department, which will speak about “transfer of developmental rights”. It is learnt that the rectified plans of three talukas — Sattari, Pernem and Canacona — approved by the TCP board headed by then Minister Francis D’Souza last year — will not be notified, at least for now.
While former government had proceeded a bit in finalising the RP21, there is no clarity now whether the plan would be for 2021 or 2031. The Minister for TCP Vijai Sardesai has insisted that the land use plan cannot be framed unless a proper policy is conceptualised.
“Let us get through the concept paper first. We can call the policy as Regional Plan 2021 or 2031, it is not important. Eventually, we need to have a policy based on which the regional plan should be drafted,” he said adding that the thought on how to go ahead with the rectification of RP would be given only after the concept paper is ready.
The state government’s grandiose exercise for a suitable RP21 has been virtually in a ‘draft’ stage for almost 20 years — with Goa still dependent on RP 2001 for planning.
Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar in his budget speech, last month, assured the State Legislative Assembly that the RP21 would be finalised by December 2017. However, Sardesai had expressed his reservation on the same.
Sardesai said that the work on RP21 will commence before end of this year. He, however, did not elaborate anything in detail.
In the first-ever meeting chaired by Parrikar, to chalk out plan as how to go forward to finalise RP 21, government has mooted the concept of incentivising the efforts to retain the old Houses or green patches in the State, in a bid to protect state’s greenery and heritage.
“Whatever we have discussed in the meeting, keeping that, the work on RP21 will commence before this year end,” Minister said.
Given the fact that even after a decade long planning process that kicked off in 2007, State failed to have a notified 2021 land use plan, the new Minister is now exploring possibility of having plan till 2031, considering that we have hardly four years in hand to reach 2021.
