Special Correspondent
Panaji
With gram sabhas across the state raising objections to what they term as ‘unchecked development’, Panchayat Minister Mauvin Godinho on Wednesday said that he would consider moving a note to initiate carrying capacity studies for each village panchayat in Goa, subject to feasibility.
Defending the role of panchayats, Godinho said that they have no role in planning
approvals and lack tools to assess the carrying capacity of villages.
He, however, said that that villages were becoming sites for mega housing projects, which stress resources. “But local panchayats alone cannot conduct carrying capacity studies,” he said, suggesting guidelines for panchayats based on factors like population, khazan lands, fields, and village strata to determine project viability.
“The village panchayats only issue licences,” Godinho said, asking the Opposition not to blame the panchayats for unchecked development.
Responding to demands from Aldona Congress MLA Carlos Ferreira and Fatorda GFP MLA Vijai Sardesai, Godinho said major planning decisions are taken by the TCP Department and and other agencies, while panchayats only issue construction licences.
Ferreira said that the former Union minister Suresh Prabhu had called for evaluating village carrying capacity in light of increasing housing activity.
He said that without such studies, rural Goa would see changes in its nature and character, and large housing projects could alter the state’s demography.
