Team Herald
MARGAO: Thousands protested outside Ravindra Bhavan, Margao on Sunday as the public hearing on the draft Coastal Zone Management Plan (CZMP) concluded without a single speech being delivered by those registered at the event.
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Legislators, namely Aleixo Reginaldo Lourenco, Vijai Sardesai, Churchill Alemao, and Digambar Kamat along with activists Olencio Simoes, Abhijit Prabhudesai, Diana Tavares and Avinash Tavares, panchas of Velsao, Ambelim, Chinchinim, Benaulim, Raia, and others insisted that the public hearing is ‘illegal’.
The hearing was held under the supervision of Additional Collector I Surendra Naik, Additional Collector II Agnelo Fernandes, Additional Collector III Gourish Kuttikar, Savio Correia, experts -Flaviano Miranda and Manik Mahapatra, NCSCM scientist Shirendra Zamble and Deputy Collector (LA) Snehal Prabhu.
The participants and speakers registered were 70 and 86 respectively. Of these, 42 speakers and 53 participants were present inside the hall at the stipulated time.
None of the above spoke during the hearing when their names were called out as the five minutes allotted to them to register their objections/suggestions elapsed.
The crowd inside the hall claimed that the hearing failed to proceed as the fishermen, who are most affected due to the alleged ‘faulty’ draft CZMP, were not allowed to speak during the hearing.
The MLAs and activists stuck to their demand of taking the CZMP to the villages and then finalising it. They contended that the maps had to be prepared in vernacular language as the fishermen had no understanding of the English language.
“You have restricted us to 150 and there are 2,000 fishermen outside. The Madras High Court in a writ petition has passed an order that the stakeholders be allowed to speak. What is stopping the authorities from registering the opinions of the fishermen”, asked Tavares.
The gathering demanded an indefinite postponement of the hearing until the fishermen are given importance. There was no CZMP presentation or speeches delivered by the speakers.
The speakers, who registered for objections and suggestions, demanded that the people outside be allowed to enter the hall. On further denial, the speakers demanded that the meeting be suspended as the protesters inside the hall claimed that there is a builder and developer lobby sitting inside the hall for their vested interests.
When NCSCM scientist Manik Mahapatra mentioned that the plan was made in consultation with the panchayats in 2016, the panchas of Betalbatim, Chinchinim Deussua, Velsao, Colva, Varca, Ambelim and others claimed that there was no communication or public consultation held in 2016 and accused the scientists of lying.
Meanwhile, Surendra Naik asked the protestors to file written submissions by March 15.
Naik and his team after waiting till 5 pm prepared the minutes of the hearing which included the objections raised by the protestors.
He said, “The entire report of the proceedings will be sent to the Environment Department. We have taken the demands of the speakers and the MLAs have one demand of taking the plan to the village level”.
“This hearing should be treated like it never happened as there was no hearing at all”, the protestors demanded.
