Eugenio Francisco Vaz, whose generations have lived in this quaint pink home next to the railway tracks at Igreja Wado, Majorda, just can’t seem to figure what the confusion is all about.
He has premises and a question. He states his family has this land (Survey number 110/8) next to the Railway track. “For years the Railways have been trying to get us to give it up (be acquired). We have always refused and will never give it up”, he said. Then the Deputy Collector Mormugao as the Competent Authority put out a notice (In Herald June 19, page 7) giving survey numbers they intended to acquire and asked for objections. Vaz’s family clearly objected to this and was awaiting their opportunity to be called for hearing with the Dy Collector. While his date of hearing was fixed on 19/10/2020 at 3.30 pm, he did not receive a letter asking to be present.
Neither did J.A, Jacques, the President of the Comunidade of Majorda and whose date was fixed by the Deputy Collectors office at the same time.
Vaz and the Comunidade of Majorda were two of the list of 48, Herald has in its possession, who have raised objections to their land been acquired in Cansaulim, Davorlim, Issorcim, Pale, Curchorem, and Sao Jose de Areal (See box).
And these are merely 48 of the about 2,800 objections from people and Comunidades in the Goa stretch alone. Each of those objections has to be heard and disposed off.
And therein lies the back- story that the South Western Railways (SWR) has been hesitant to reveal. In the narrative that they are pushing that consent to acquire land has been given by the people and a few small patches remain, lies the list of objections running onto sheets.
The village wise break up of these objections are; Majorda-2, Cansaulim-11, Davorlim-1, Issorcim-2, Pale- 20, Curchorem-1, Sao Jose de Areal- 13
Of this list, it’s prudent to note that in Davorlim, Curchorem and Sao Jose de Areal, SWR has maintained that all clearances have been received and there are no impediments to land acquisition. But it clearly flies in the face of these lists of at least 48 people/survey numbers including from Sao Jose De Areal, where protestors went to the tracks to stop constructions. And while there may be arguable merit in the SW Railways assertion that this is Railway land, the fact remains that there are parcels, big and small, that remain to be acquired, for which the owners of those lands have not yet given their consent to do so.
In the larger scheme of things, it perhaps doesn’t matter to the Centre, the Goa government or the Railways. Legally and procedurally, the Railways have identified the land they need for the project and handed over the project to the state government through its Revenue department. So even as protests rage in Goa, in the Headquarters of the South Western Railway at Hubli, this is a signed sealed and delivered with only the ground level execution needed. And that is a sense Team Herald got when it visited Hubli.
But land and its relationship to lives can never be felt or comprehended in project files. Even the entire exercise of issuing a notice in the newspapers identifying land the railways ‘intend’ to acquire, is, from the Railways point of, just going through the motions. There is never any doubt that they can be any impediment, much less of the kind where objection of the owners of any of the lands, including the Comunidade (whose real spirit and powers, no railway Babu will ever know or need to) will ever hold up their project.
But these are the lands of people we are talking of. This doesn’t just equal wealth but health, both physical and emotional. This was witnessed on Saturday morning when this reporter went to meet Eugenio Fransisco Vaz. As he began to speak, his wife ran down the stairs in pent up rage and demanded to know why we wanted to ask “so many questions”. We have already said that we will not give up our land. How can the railways bulldoze. I have the power of attorney and I am clear, you think we will change, so why are you asking again?”
She can surely be excused for blurring the lines between a government official and a reporter because she, like many, sees any visitors with questions regarding their land as unnecessary intrusions into their space and time. So even as the decision of the Railways to take her land is non-negotiable, her decision not to give her land is equally non negotiable.
After the notice for acquisition appeared in Herald on June 19.2020, the series of objections went out in the third week of July. On July 13, the President of the Majorda Communidade, J.A Jacques, wrote to the Competent Authority and Dy Collector and SDO Mormugao sating his objection to the acquisition of survey numbers 110/4 for the Special Project- Doubling of Hospet-Hubbali- Tinnaighat-Vasco in Goa.
Identical objections were filed by all stating how the project would cause the destruction of their properties, ‘increase noise and coal dust pollution and subject them and their families to many other risks. (See box for full text of objection).
The case of the Comunidade of Majorda is a very interesting one. There are two survey numbers of land under them 110/4 and 114/15. These lands were used for the laying of the single track during the British times. There is no evidence of acquisition in the first instance by the SWR. When these lands came up against Double Tracking vide the June 19 notices, J A Jacques, the President, filed separate objections for both properties (see copies of both objections).
SWR claimed to Herald in an interview a fortnight ago, that “At the time of laying of meter gauge track, 1704 Ha of land was acquired by Railways in the State of Goa for nearly 77 Km route”
For over 20 years, a pending compensation has not been cleared by the railways
J A Jacques told Herald, “Twenty years ago, when the Railways wanted to use more land for the broadening of the road next to the tracks, this Comunidade went to Court against it. But the Court ruled in their favour and gave them the added “benefit” on the assurance that compensation would be paid. The railways pleaded that they did not have the budget for it and would compensate when they had budgetary provisions. They still haven’t. For twenty plus years.”
This gives you a fair indication of how seriously, objections are taken; and the deficit between the purported will to compensate and the actual compensation thereof.
But it’s not going to be easy. There are about 2800 objections to be dealt with
The only silver lining to the stoppage of this insensitive acquisition process initiated by the Railways is the he Deputy Collector Mormugao Sachin Dessai has promised to play by the book and had said, “ I have sent a report to the Government of the prevailing (the huge people protests on October 19 when the first batch of hearings were supposed to take place). I’m waiting for instructions. But I will have to go through the whole process of hearing them. There are 2,800-odd objections in the entire stretch of Goa (This includes from Kullem to Margao where the SW Railways claims is devoid of any objections- our inference and not a part of the Dy Collectors quote) and that process has to be completed.”
If 2800 objections still pending on shouldn’t further work be paused till these are disposed off?
This then begs the question. If there are 2800 objections still pending on what basis is the work of double-tracking going in full swing.
The reality of the 2800 pending objections is known to SWRE. But it sees it in terms of the amount of land that has to be acquired; not that the hopes of thousands are on the edge. In response to questions asked by Herald two weeks ago, SWR had stated that the total private land requirement details from Kulem-Vasco Section, is 12.0557 Ha, which is a “microscopic percentage compared to land already available with Railways.”
For the Kulem-Margao Section the requisition was submitted on Sept 6, 2016 and for Majorda-Vasco on June 12, 2017.
The trust-deficit is adding to the deadlock
Above all, the trust deficit between the railways and the people and their politicians is adding to the pressure and the deadlock. Cresson Antao, Panch of Majorda and the Convenor of Goencho Ekvott said, “We don’t trust them. We have been told that of the land that the railways have acquired, they have not carried out mutations of the land they really need; thereby freeing up the lands that they don’t and by not doing mutations, they are keeping the door open for more.”
“But we will win this battle. The youth are out in the open. And the protests have spread to North Goa. This is a battle we cannot and we will not lose,” he added.
The battle between the might of the State versus the fight of the people.
