All internal roads were constructed by the Goa government after a delay of nearly 12 years
Electricity yet to reach the displaced families and they still depend on the Maharashtra government for their daily power needs
SAMEER UMARYE
teamherald@herald-goa.com
When they left their village, lost their houses and abandoned their farms for a noble cause some 12 years ago, little did they realize that they would be looked down upon by others, including the State government.
This is the plight of about 150 families from Tillari, who sacrificed their land and livelihood for the construction of Tillari Irrigation project and agreed to settle along the Goan border in Sal village in Bicholim taluka.
When they were offered a proposal to shift their entire village, they preferred to accept the government’s proposal with a hope of a better future, rather than fighting a lost battle.
“About 150 families were shifted in 2002 from Tillari–Maharashtra to Sal-Bicholim and 204 plots were reserved for us,” recalled Ramesh Patil, secretary of Tillari Dam Gram Vikas Committee.
As per the agreement, the Maharashtra government was given land in Sal to develop and provide all amenities to the displaced residents, before handing it over to the Goa government.
But when the Tillari villagers began constructing houses, they were given only a small room in the form of a ‘Samaj Mandir’ (hall) and some public toilets.
“Dodamarg (Maharashtra) is close to the plots allotted to us, but still we don’t have any proper connecting road to Dodamarg. If this arrangement was made, everything including a hospital, market and school would have been close to us,” Patil said.
“We are now part of Goa and have voting rights, but if we demand any facilities with authorities, they bluntly tell us to forward our demands with the Maharashtra government,” said Patil.
Such has been their living conditions that all internal roads were constructed by the Goa government barely recently, a delay of nearly 12 years. The Goa government’s electricity is yet to reach all displaced families and they still depend on the Maharashtra government.
“It appears as if we neither belong to Maharashtra nor to Goa, as both governments have been ignoring our demands. Authorities in Goa look down on us and insist that we have come from Maharashtra,” Patil added.
“We gave others water, but everyone has forgotten us in the process,” lamented Patil.
Following an official notification in 2001, the Goa government had accorded all rights to these families but these benefits have remained largely on paper. The displaced families staged a three-day hunger strike in 2010 to get their houses registered with Sal panchayat.
“About 87 houses were allotted house numbers, but other houses built later are yet to get any house numbers and these families cannot even seek a ration card,” informed another resident, Devidas Naik.
Their woes don’t end there. In the absence of proper road access, the 108 ambulance and the LPG gas vehicle refuse to go to their houses. Residents are forced to take a patient and an empty gas cylinder right up to the main road, which is about a kilometre away, where they meet the 108 ambulance and the LPG gas vehicle.
“During rainy season, the road gets submerged and our children cannot even go to the nearby school,” said Ravindra Mhapsekar.
When contacted, Sal Sarpanch Ghanasham Raut, who also happens to be the ward member, told Herald that he has done a lot for the people. “We got the internal road sanctioned at a cost of Rs 1.3 crore and work to lay electricity poles is also in progress,” said Raut.
He also showed an order for the construction of a hall, which he had got sanctioned from the government. Raut, however, could not explain as to why the work order issued in May 2013 was still pending.
Some residents, however, feel that the displaced Tillari residents are partially responsible for their pitiable conditions.“The Goa government is trying its best, but the people from Tillari should not have taken possession of plots from Maharashtra till all facilities were provided to them,” remarked a villager from Sal who spoke on condition of anonymity.
“Some of them have constructed houses in Goa and have given them on rent. They have availed the benefits of schemes provided by the government and still prefer to stay in Maharashtra,” the resident added.
