PONDA: Tensions ran high at the Vere Vagurme gram sabha as hundreds of locals confronted the Sarpanch regarding the Rs 3.75 crore Shitolem lake development project initiated by the Water Resources Department (WRD). The locals accused the panchayat of keeping them in the dark about the project and unanimously passed a resolution to scrap it.
The meeting, chaired by Sarpanch Shoba Perni, witnessed around 400 villagers in attendance. Over the course of three hours, discussions became heated, with frequent demands from the locals for the resignation of the Sarpanch and panchayat members for their failure to provide a detailed explanation of the project.
The villagers demanded that the Sarpanch clarify the details of the proposed project, including when it was proposed, how it would benefit the village, why the project commenced secretly without informing the villagers, and who inaugurated the project.
Sarpanch Perni claimed that the project was proposed by the previous panchayat body, and she had no detailed information about it.
WRD Assistant Engineer Shailesh Naik mentioned that the project had been requested by locals in a meeting held in 2021. When the locals asked for the minutes of that meeting, panchayat secretary Prasad Naik stated that he had no official record of the meeting and no information about who had proposed it. As a result, the locals demanded the project’s cancellation, claiming that no official formalities had been followed by the panchayat before granting permission.
The Shitolem Lake Development work is part of the Rs 100 crore Murdi-Khandepar drinking water Bandhara project on the Opa river. However, this larger project is also facing opposition from the Curti-Khandepar panchayat and the Sonarbaag-Usgao panchayat, as villagers fear potential flooding due to the project work.
The locals also fear that the project will primarily benefit proposed large steel industries and residential complexes in Vere Vagurme on the Bhutkhamb Plateau, causing them to lose their traditional sources of water for farming and drinking water wells.
