NT Reporter | Margao
A day after Chief Minister Pramod Sawant said there were no plans to increase coal handling in the state, Goyant Kollso Naka on Wednesday accused him of misleading people and challenged him to a public debate to prove the facts.
The group, which organised a largely attended public meeting on Sunday, said several state projects had been approved with the “clear aim of expanding coal handling”.
Reacting to the CM’s statement, activist Abhijit Prabhudesai said, “If you are genuinely saying that you don’t want coal to increase even by one tonne, all these permissions and land acquisitions have to be stopped. Goa is being attacked in every way.”
Prabhudesai cited the 2023 environmental clearance for doubling coal handling capacity at Mormugao Port from 7 MTPA to 14 MTPA and the proposed Xelvona coal jetty, which he said was halted only due to local protests.
He also referred to the July clearance for capital dredging of Vasco Bay from 14 m to 19 m, adding, “This is purely to allow massive cape-size vessels to unload huge quantities of coal at the port which will turn Vasco and other parts of Goa into living hell. The Sagarmala project also is only for coal. CM knows this and wants to go ahead with it.”
“This government has given our six rivers under the national waterways. Now that the people are demanding for the rivers to be returned, use your double engine government to bring these rivers back. We are ready for an open debate with the chief minister on this topic,” said activist and advocate Albertina Almeida.
Activist Sabita Mascarenhas said that the anti-coal movement is a people’s movement and that there is no political issue.
“In Velsao, there is double tracking and the CM is sending police, collector and other departments to allow this. The double tracking project is only for coal handling, nothing else.
We challenge and urge you to show you the presentation that was shown
on that day. If there is anything wrong in it, we will remove it, but if it is right, coal handling should be stopped,” she said.
