Panaji: In a shocking expose that threatens to demolish hundreds of traditional Goan homes, heritage houses, religious structures and rural greenery, Congress in Goa has found out that the Government of Goa had colluded with Government of India to secretively declare 406 km of internal inter-village roads and Main District Roads as National Highway. Goa Government had secretively given in-principle approval for converting these lower traffic rural and urban roads into National Highways. The said in-principle approvals grant statutory powers to Union Ministry of Road Transport & Highways to acquire the land and convert it into 4 and 6 lane highways.
“Can you imagine the right of way for the said highways itself will be 45 mtr minimum on either side of the four- or six-lane highway? Does the Govt even realise how many people in Saxti and Bardez alone will be losing their homes and property?” asks Girish Chodankar, President, Goa Pradesh Congress Committee. “After bulldozing decisions to lay high-tension power lines through Mollem Forest, Unwanted Double Tracking for converting Goa into Coal Hub and now this shocking decision all pushed quietly, the Goa Govt is turning out to be Brokers Jahil (Uneducated) Party which in collusion with the Centre is not even asking nor telling the people of Goa whether they needed these highways or not”.
As per the Central Government Report titled Pragati Ki Nayi Gati (The New Pace of Development) that has been proposed and decided upon under Bharatmala Scheme of Union Ministry of Road Transport & Highways, additional 406 km of National Highway has been granted in-principle approval over and above the existing 262 km of National Highway. As per conservative estimates, if all the existing roads are presently assumed to be around 15 mtr wide, the total land needed for the expansion is more than 121 lakh sq mtr. “This document was prepared in 2018 and therefore it is evident that this plan was in motion during the current and previous BJP Governments in Goa and was also known to both it’s allies present and the past. Yet no one opposed it!”, points Chodankar.
The new notified National Highways implies that thousands of structures including houses, temples, churches and heritage structures will have to be demolished in dense settlement areas of Goa and leave thousands homeless and landless claimed Chodankar.
Chodankar strongly demanded with the Chief Minister Dr. Pramod Sawant to come out clean on this another BJP plan of Goa’s destruction.