NT Reporter Panaji
Threatening to intensify their protest against the tourism department’s proposed Unity Mall project in Chimbel, villagers and people from across the state gathered at the project site on Sunday in significant numbers and demanded that the project be scrapped over ecological concerns.
A resolution to this effect was passed unanimously at the large-scale public meet, which was also attended by opposition leaders cutting across party lines.
Chimbel villagers threatened to continue with the chain hunger strike until the project was scrapped, while other protesters said that members would visit government offices like Goa Tourism Development Corporation (GTDC), Directorate of Panchayats, Town and Country Planning Department (TCP), Block Development Office and also MLA offices as part of the protest and hold dharnas.
Villagers said the proposed project site is an ecologically sensitive Toyyar Lake wetland and claimed that the area has been visited and studied by the authorities several times since 2012.
Villager Ajay Kholkar said their fight was against the system and that the protesters were confident of winning the same. He claimed that the village panchayat had denied approval for the project but government officers were pressured to grant permission within 24 hours. He said the biodiversity committee approached court and alleged that work on the project continued despite a stay from the court.
It may be noted that the villagers in Chimbel have resorted to a hunger strike to protest the project, alleging that authorities have ignored an order of the Panaji sessions court halting
the construction.
Tourism department has said that the construction licence granted to the project had been taken on record by the district court. “Importantly, no stay order has been issued against the project, thereby legally permitting construction activities to continue,” the department has said.
Protesters accused the government of misleading the people and ignoring democratic process. Another villager Govind Shirodkar said environment is being destroyed and there was a need for Goans to raise their voice.
Addressing the gathering, Leader of the Opposition Yuri Alemao said people cannot afford to remain silent when it comes to protecting our land and the state. He said the large crowd at the meet has proved that people are ready to raise their voices. Alemao accused the BJP government in Goa of pushing projects with arrogance and ignoring environmental damage. He also said that despite a court order to halt work, the government was continuing work on the Unity Mall and Prashasan Stambh projects.
Revolutionary Goans Party (RGP) MLA Viresh Borkar said the large turnout was a sign that the BJP government would be voted out next year. He accused the BJP of not considering the opinion of villagers before starting a project. He said similar projects like the one proposed in Karmali would also face opposition.
Amit Palekar, former chief of Goa AAP, said that the Toyyar Lake is beautiful and has an opening that supplies water to Chimbel village. He said if the lake is preserved, it would provide continuous water supply to the village. He also suggested that the area could be developed into a good tourism spot like Big Foot while preserving nature.
Palekar questioned why the government wanted to continue with the project despite strong objection from people across the state. He also questioned why the project could not be shifted to another location. Legislator Carlos Alvares Ferreira and RGP president Manoj Parab also extended their support to Chimbel villagers.
Environmentalist Claude Alvares, who joined the protest, said that as per the project documents, Unity Mall should be built in a place with a high flow of people and tourists. He said selecting the current location was a mistake.
Alvares said the project costs around Rs 100 crore and should not have been started without proper discussion and approvals from the panchayat and the villagers. He said real development in villages should focus on basic needs such as health centres, toilets and garbage management.
