NT Reporter Panaji
Stating that administrative bottlenecks were denying the state’s tribal population and farming community access to crucial government welfare programmes, Priol MLA Govind Gaude on Tuesday demanded urgent policy reforms to provide relief to the beneficiaries.
Gaude was speaking in the assembly during discussion on the state budget 2025-26. Stressing on the plight of tribal applicants under the flagship schemes such as Ashraya Adhar Yojana and Atal Asra Yojana, which aim at supporting the marginalised communities with housing assistance, the former art and culture minister said the mandatory requirement for a government employee or a private sector employee with limited income to act as a witness for the applicants is impractical for many tribal families living in remote areas.
“These schemes are meant to assist the tribal community with housing-related activities, but the criterion requiring a witness is leading to difficulties, as the tribals have limited access to such individuals,” Gaude said.
Speaking about the issues faced by the Other Backward Classes community, he said applications submitted three years ago for various welfare schemes remain trapped without approval due to administrative limbo.
Gaude also criticised the Water Resources Department (WRD) for insisting on No Objection Certificates (NOCs) from landowners for minor irrigation works.
He said many of such landowners are residing abroad or are unreachable. “Farmers are the backbone of our country. If their issues remain unresolved, what meaning do concepts like Antyodaya and Sarvodaya hold?” he questioned.
St Cruz MLA Rudolf Fernandes echoed concerns regarding the Atal Aasra Yojana. “The scheme is progressing at a snail’s pace with delayed fund release forcing applicants to seek private loans. When officers finally inspect, they reject applications claiming that houses are already constructed,” Fernandes said.
Gaude also launched an attack on the functioning of Public Works Department (PWD) engineers, accusing them of inefficiency and indulging in ego-driven delays that, he said, are stalling critical infrastructure works in the state.
The Priol MLA’s criticism was with regard to a stalled water supply project in his constituency where a tender for the Ganjem plant remains unexecuted and now requires complete revision. The legislator said the project’s 100mm diameter pipeline needs upgradation to 200mm diameter to meet the constituency’s requirements for the next four decades. “This upgradation requires not just a scheme on paper but genuine government commitment for implementation,” Gaude said.
“Many a times, I have experienced that after an administrative approval is given to a project, the finance department raises queries over technical aspects during the sanction for expenditure stage which clearly suggests that the technical engineers are incompetent,” he said.
Gaude attributed the delays to personal ego conflicts among department officials. “Such ego problems are hindering development work,” he said.
