NT Reporter
Margao
Ambelim residents are preparing to challenge the demarcation of Sappu Tollem as a protected wetland, alleging that 2.4 lakh sqm of land has been classified as wetland even though the actual water body measures about 3,000 sqm.
The move comes as the deadline for completing the physical boundary survey under Supreme Court (SC) directions approaches. Villagers and local representatives said they will seek an urgent review of the demarcation, which they fear could affect the livelihoods of hundreds of families.
“The actual water body measures about 3,000 sqm, whereas 2.4 lakh sqm of land has been notified under the wetland classification,” said Velim AAP MLA Cruz Silva.
On Wednesday, villagers, local body representatives, members of the biodiversity management committees of Velim and Ambelim, and Silva held discussions with a Goa State Wetland Authority (GSWA) field surveyor.
They said the surveyor had informed them that the authority was bound by an absolute deadline to complete the ground demarcation in accordance with SC directions, with four days earmarked for the exercise.
Silva said he would write to the GSWA seeking a site visit. He added that villagers had sought details of when the survey was conducted. The Ambelim panchayat would also write to the authority seeking an urgent visit, he said.
“The village panchayat has already convened a special gram sabha to pass a resolution against this erroneous mapping. We have submitted a detailed memorandum reflecting the ground reality after holding consultations
with the farmers, tenants and members of biodiversity management committee,” sarpanch Alexander D’Silva said.
D’Silva said villagers had agreed that only the area occupied by the water body should be demarcated as a wetland, rather than the entire notified area.
The GSWA notified the water body as a wetland in 2023. However, the Ambelim panchayat had allegedly missed the mandatory 90-day window to file formal objections, allowing the notification to proceed.
The villagers said they support the ecological preservation of the actual 3,000 sqm lake but would oppose any attempt to freeze the livelihoods of hundreds of families because of what they described as “a bureaucratic mapping error”.
