PANJIM: A total of 82,295 sq mtrs of orchard land will be converted to settlement land by declaring it an ‘Investment Promotion Area’ for setting up the five-star Resort and Villas by Ozone Leisure and Resort Pvt Ltd at Vanxim. The Investment Promotion Board (IPB), while granting its ‘in-principle’ approval to the project recommended the land conversion.
IPB Chief Executive Officer Ashton Godinho made the recommendation grant the project ‘Investment Promotion Area’ status so as to facilitate the conversion of the property from orchard to settlement zone. Of the 82,295 sq mtrs of land, IPB wants the government to notify 34,115 sq mtrs as settlement zone in the Regional Plan 2021.
“The proposals cleared by the IPB under provisions of Investment Promotion Act, 2014 in respect of land earmarked as settlement zone or industrial zone or institutional zone in the Regional Plan for Goa 2021 shall be considered and cleared,” Godinho recommended quoting Town and Country Planning (TCP) department order issued on September 28, 2015.
The investors have been asked to maintain the eco-system of the surrounding area of the project. IPB has also recommended to the Electricity and Public Works Departments to release power load of 2000KVA and water of 230KLD to the project respectively. “To recommend to the concerned authorities of the State and Central government to grant the necessary permissions to the project,” Godinho said.
The company has been asked to ensure that 80 percent employment is provided to locals. The project was cleared by IPB, under chairmanship of CM Laxmikant Parsekar, earlier this month. IPB’s decision to clear the eco-tourism project at Vanxim island, held up since 2010 following protests from the islanders, has raised serious questions, as the project was cleared a month after the death of Fr Bismarque Dias, who had opposed it.
