Team Herald
PANJIM: Smart City Mission is the mother of all scams in the city of Panjim as nobody knows how the Rs 669 crore allotted for the Mission gone, moreover not a single work details is displayed on its website, Congress’ Panjim candidate Elvis Gomes told Herald.
“Take the case of CCTV cameras. The city roads are being dug very badly. Nobody knows why it is being done. They want to lay underground cables for CCTV cameras. Today’s technology does not require you to dig trench and yet get best results,” he said.
He said that Rs 128 crore is being spent in a small city to install CCTV cameras. “This is itself a big scam. Then they are talking about laying smart roads about which no one knows. There is no public participation in the process. Initially they did some consultation, thereafter they have forgotten about the people,” he said.
These smart roads have to be completed within 18 months. The Smart Mission started six years ago. It was due for completion last year. Now that the central government has given extension but six years down the line, no work has been completed. There is no accountability regarding the funds spent.
“There is another project that is simultaneously operating named Atal Mission for Urban Rejuvenation. They have concretised the Miramar beach. There is no planning. The Coastal Regulatory Zone violation is very blatant. Whether it is CCTV cameras, Smart Roads or sewage line network, there has to be a holistic planning and integration of all the departments. At the end of the day the day it is the tax payer who is bearing the brunt,” he said.
He said that the Smart City Mission is a shared project in which 50 per cent of the funds come from State treasury. There has to be accountability for people of Goa also.
“If I get elected, I will immediately appoint a commission to find out what has happened with the Smart City Mission. There is a mechanism laid by the Centre on how the funds should be utilised. City is not getting smart and the citizens are being kept out of the process. I want to get the citizens back,” Gomes said.
He added that the cultural heritage of Panjim is getting eroded and the government is not bothered. “Now this is the time for course correction. You can’t allow the city to remain in such an abject state,” he said.
