PANJIM: Even as the Goa Government amended the Goa, Daman and Diu Highways Act of 1974 to empower the State to declare State Highways within the jurisdiction of the municipalities as ‘Urban Roads’, liquor traders in the major cities in Goa, Vasco, Margao and Panjim will have to wait until the National Highways are denotified for some relief.
Liquor traders in Bicholim, Sanquelim, Valpoi, Ponda and Curchorem municipalities are expected to benefit from the amendment and other municipalities will have to wait for the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MORTH) to denotify the NHs passing through their respective jurisdictions.
Further, the affected liquor traders in the villages will have to wait until the State government files a review petition before the Supreme Court and convinces the Apex Court to grant relief.
Even for those who will reap the benefits of the Goa Highways (Amendment) Act, 2017, which was passed in the Goa Legislative Assembly on Monday, will have to wait for at least a month and half to get the relief.
Speaking to Herald, PWD Principal Chief Engineer Uttam Parsekar said the amendment is restricted to only State highways passing through the municipal areas. “As far the National Highways are concerned we do not have the provisions and the central government will have to do it”, he stated.
The law already empowers the government to notify the SHs passing through the villages as ‘village road’.
Section 3 of the amended Act states, “The government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, declare any road, way or land to be a highway and classify it as (i) a State Highway (ii) a major district road (iii) other district road, or (iv) a village road or a urban road.”
All Goa Liquor Traders Association (AGLTA) President Dattaprasad Naik said that while six municipal areas will benefit from the amendment, the association hopes that others will be relieved by denotifying the NHs.
Regarding NHs passing through the villages he said, “Eleven districts in Uttarakhand have received complete relief from the Supreme Court after their government filed a review petition. So we hope that the villages in Goa too will get relief once our government files a review petition in the Apex Court.”
