'Save Goa' movement against Regional Plan 2011 gaining pace

Panaji, Dec 3: Citizens groups, professionals and activists in this tiny coastal state have upped their ante against the Goa Government's 'Regional Plan 2011' which they allege sanctions illegality and amounted to destruction of the picturesque tourist destination in the name of development.

Different outfits including Goa Heritage Action Group, Peoples Movement for Civic Action and Bombay Environmental Action Group have come together under a common umbrella of 'Save Goa' forum to raise their voice against what they call 'manipulation by vested interests to relegate Goa into an urban slum.

''We are not anti-development. Development should be in the right direction and enhance the quality of life of locals and not serve greedy interests,'' activists like Patricia Pinto, Heta Pandit, Dean D Cruz and others told a press conference here today.

Noted fashion designer Wendell Rodrigues has pledged his support to the cause demanding withdrawal of the Final Regional Plan 2011 and undertake a fresh consultative, transparent, non-political and unmotivated view of the plan.

Wendell narrated his own experiences in his village of Colval where the life of the locals had become a misery due to setting up of polluting industries by giving away green land to the developers. He also distributed wrist bands and stickers, specially designed by him as part of the awareness campaign.

Wendell also launched a website, ''savegoa.com'' as part of the awareness campaign.

According to them, the final plan contains several major changes from the draft plan.

According to them, the Draft Plan envisaged 29 per cent increase in the settlement area (1.070 lakh sq meter), while in the final plan, there is an additional jump of 21 per cent (750 lakh sq meter). They said SEZs and the Mopa International Airport had been included in the additional settlement areas. ''If the motives are genuine, why is the government shying away from making the final plan public and why was the SEZs and airport plan not included in the Draft plan,'' they asked.

The jump has taken place in a matter of five months and the people are unaware of the details. ''All efforts to get a copy of the plan under the Right to Information Act have proved futile.

The development proposed in the vicinity of famous beaches like Baga, Calangute and the Zuari river, Cancona areas are violations of all existing laws,'' says another activist Reboni Saha in her presentation.

Sanjeev Trivedi, who has been living in Goa for the last eight years, says the final document is confusing. ''It is highly possible that the planners and policy makers themselves do not know what they are trying to do. If you want to convert Goa into a Singapore, you should first ensure that each Goan's per capita income matches the per capita income of a Singaporean. If it remains the same, Goan will be a beggar in his own land,'' he added.

He said people like him had settled in Goa to get away from the maddening crowd of Mumbai and Delhi. Mr Trivedi said if the state goes on a development mode keeping with the Regional plan, it spells doom.

''The government has failed to provide power, water, garbage and sewage disposal to the existing settlements,'' he added.

Rolland Martin of Goacan, another citizens group said village panchayats need to know why paddy fields have been declared as additional settlement areas. ''It is nothing but a final nail in our coffin which has a larger design to change the character of our state,'' he said and demanded that the plan be revoked immediately.

He said consultative planning process was required.

Dr Oscar Rebello, a noted physician from the state exhorted all goans to join hands to fight a political battle for the survival of the state.

Ms Patricia Pinto said the final regional plan cannot stand as the development blueprint for Goa in its current form. Wendell said the government is not providing infrastructure, power and water to the existing population but is readily giving away land to vested interests to further their business.

Referring to the proposed six additional new towns like Business cum recreation center on 1000 hectare of land near Panaji, Water sports center in Bardez taluka, Taluka, Techno recreational center near Margao, Leisure city in Cancona, Health tourism center in Sanguem and Eco-tourism center in Ponda near the Bondla sanctuary have not emerged from a consultative process that involves local bodies of governance.

Development of Goa should be for Goans and each citizen must understand the implications it holds for them, they said.

UNI