Staff Reporter
Panaji
Porvorim witnessed tension through the day on Sunday as the authorities began demolition of the Dev Khapreshwar temple while translocating the massive heritage banyan tree at Vadakode along the highway NH66.
Devotees and others protested in large numbers even as the police had a tough time to assuage the feelings of the angry crowd.
The tension was defused by a stay order issued by the Bardez mamlatdar office late Sunday evening.
The banyan tree is being translocated to make way for the Porvorim elevated corridor as per the order of the Bombay High Court.
A large number of people began gathering at the banyan tree junction to protest against the decision to demolish the Dev Khapreshwar temple adjacent to the 200-year-old revered tree.
They protested the way in which the idol was being removed by labourers without following due religious rituals even as officials said that priests had been brought to do the rituals. They demanded from the authorities to produce the order that authorised the shifting of the idol and demolition of the temple.
As the day progressed, politicians, social and environmental activists joined forces to protect the temple from demolition. Activists and devotees strongly opposed the move, and engaged in vociferous arguments with officials at the Khapreshwar Devesthan. They demanded to know why there was a hurry to demolish the temple and shift the idol. Secondly, they demanded to know where the idol would be taken from the temple.
The protestors accused the government of being anti-Hindu for demolishing a temple without following the proper procedure and rituals. A political leader said that those who swear by Hindu faith and are devotees of this temple from the Porvorim constituency had stayed away from the protest as they are obliged to a politician.
President of the Dev Khapreshwar Devasthan Karthik Kudnekar who appeared crestfallen with the developments, late evening, told a channel that till Saturday night a strong appeal was made to the Chief Minister’s Office not to go ahead with the demolition of the temple for some days. He said when a delegation had gone to Delhi, Union minister Nitin Gadkari had agreed to ask his officials to consider shifting the alignment of the flyover slightly to protect the heritage banyan tree and the temple. However, there were some forces who opposed it, he said.
The police personnel put up a barricade to stop the entry of the protestors.
It is pertinent to note that the High Court of Bombay at Goa has allowed the translocation of the tree with directions.
The tension was finally defused by a stay order issued by the Bardez mamlatdar office late Sunday evening. However, the order to halt the demolition came when most of the temple had already been demolished, and the removal of the idol with the help of cutters was underway.
The protestors accused the government of being anti-Hindu for demolishing a temple without following the proper procedure and rituals.
The High Court had said the PWD, ‘Doctor Trees’ and RRSM have been permitted to go ahead with the translocation of the sixth and last banyan tree, so as to make way for the flyover.
The translocation shall be carried out by Doctor Trees strictly in terms of the methodology submitted by it to the deputy conservator of forests pursuant to the meeting held on January 31, 2025, as amended in the final action plan submitted on February 25, 2025, the High Court had said.
The transplantation procedure submitted by M/s Doctor Trees to be followed in true spirit including the minimum height and width to be maintained above-ground level as suggested by the petitioners [35 ft height above ground level with sufficient foliage and 13.2 ft average width].
However, effort shall be made to complete the entire translocation exercise within a time span of 24 to 36 hours, once the pruning/trimming is started, so as to minimise the shock and wilting.
Only minimal removal of horizontal branches shall be carried out so as to ensure effective translocation and survival of trees. The transportation shall be planned in such a way that ball of earth is intact and damage to the main trunk is minimal, the High Court had said.
The HC had also said the expert Parag Mody (expert landscape, design and execution) shall be present at the two sites where the work of translocation is undertaken, and is permitted to make monthly visits to the site where the trees are shifted/translocated for a period of one year and make any recommendations to Doctor Trees and RRSM with copy to the PWD and deputy conservator of forests.
“DCF shall consider the recommendations and issue any directions to RRSM/Doctor Trees/PWD as he may find necessary,” the HC had said.
