Team Herald
PANJIM: Gauging the people’s pulse in Sattari, Health Minister Vishwajit Rane on Tuesday demanded that the IIT Goa project be moved out of Guleli.
The decision comes a day after Rane said he would reassess the ground situation on the IIT Goa protests.
Following a barrage of tweets on Monday, the Valpoi MLA followed it up with a video announcing his decision. “I have written to Chief Minister Dr Pramod Sawant demanding scrapping of IIT project,” he said.
Rane further said the situation in Melauli worsened only after the police action on January 6. “I condemn the police action, I have asked the Chief Minister to withdraw all the cases filed against the villagers of Shel-Melauli,” he said adding, “Since the day police marched in the village, the atmosphere changed.”
He said he wanted IIT project as it would create developmental prospects “but if people don’t want it, I stand with people”.
He said, “I have taken a decision that I don’t want IIT in Valpoi, the government can take it anywhere else in Goa, I am people-oriented person and I stand by my villagers.”
He further demanded with the Chief Minister to take back all the cases registered and also demanded that action be taken against police officers who assaulted women in Shel-Melauli.
Since an IIT was allotted to Goa by the Central government in 2014, the institute has been functioning from a temporary campus shared with Goa Engineering College in Farmagudi.
For the last few months villagers from Melauli in Sattari have been protesting the hasty land acquisition procedures put in place by the government to acquire 10 lakh square kms for setting up of the IIT campus.
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EXCERPTS FROM THE LETTER
“…I have been observing what is happening in my constituency and the political situation and situation on the ground among the people and their views about the IIT. The whole emotion has gone on a different tangent and people are becoming more aggressive.”
“People’s views are changing and all the other people who were originally in support of the IIT, are today against the project.”
“Further, I am very disheartened that I was not taken into confidence for the police action and I was never consulted nor was part of any meeting wherein deployment of police was planned in my constituency.”
“Today the situation is such that the law and order is in a very bad condition in pertaining to this IIT project. I definitely as a representative of my constituency would not like law and police to be used against my people.”
“I appeal to you that you can shift this project to any other place other than Sattari and Usgao, Since, I as the representative of my people will not be in a position to support this project anymore.”
“I have spoken to my people from different villages and we have come to a consensus that this project should be shifted out of Sattari. I am grateful to you for having selected Sattari as a place for the IIT. We initiated the project thinking that this will bring in a lot of development and bring in a lot of vibrancy in Sattari and make it an education huh, which was the vision & plan. The plan was never to use police or manhandling.”
“It’s my appeal to the Hon’ble Chief Minister to please consider this request with all humility and as a member of a cabinet appeal to you to please scrap the project of the IIT in my constituency I need to side with the people ultimately I am the representative elected by them.”
“…As long as blood flows through my body, every drop of blood will be used for the development of Sattari & Usgao, do employment generation of the youth of Sattari & Usgao and women empowerment of the women in Sattari & Usgao.”
