MARGAO: A day after the Goa Legislative Assembly hotly debated the three linear projects including the double tracking issue, the Rail Vikas Nigam Ltd said that it will go ahead with work despite protests from the locals.
At a meeting called by with locals at Chandor to discuss the issue, the RVM said that “come what may, they will go ahead with work of double tracking.”
“If you have issues go to the court, we have no problems,” said the RVM officials at the meeting.
The people have objected to work being carried out sans any permissions.
“The RVM have no permission any authority. How can they go ahead. We will have to chalk out our future course of action now,” said Abhijit Prabhudesai of Goyant Kolso Naka.
On Friday, following a persistent demand by the locals, officials of Rail Vikas Nigam Ltd agreed to suspend all ongoing work for double tracking the South Western Railway line at Guirdolim till a joint meeting is held with the panchayat members, villagers and MLAs.
The villagers were agitated that the authorities had practically buried Guirdolim River in order to carry on the double tracking work and refused to accept the railway authorities’ assurances that the mud would be excavated and river restored once the work is over.
Earlier in the morning, the villagers inspected the work undertaken and were shocked to note that a long stretch of Guirdolim River was buried with mud.
Incensed with this, they stopped the work immediately following which the Rail Vikas Nigam Ltd officials agreed to come with their plans for a discussion in the evening.
The railway authorities showed their plan which had a construction of a retaining wall following which there would be a channel and then a road meant for the benefit of the people.
“How can you fit a river into a channel?” asked Zarina D’Cunha while the Guirdolim Sarpanch Janety Silveira asserted that the people did not need the road.
