Goemkarponn desk
ST INEZ: On Wednesday night, tensions over ongoing Smart City construction erupted in St. Inez, Panaji. Residents stopped the project because they were angry that a power line had been damaged during the installation and that Smart City officials had trespassed onto their private land.
The disagreement started when workers were digging up the walkway to replace the pavers as part of a remodelling project.
Residents complained that the designated area violated their property, and one store owner expressed annoyance at the ongoing disruption the construction was causing.
“They have been excavating this area for a year, and now they are invading our land.” There is always dust here, so we don’t even have customers. Why won’t they provide us with acquisition evidence? He remarked, “So we can’t even say anything now? I only asked them to dig a bit away from my showroom and they called the police.” locals said.
Officials from Smart City maintained their position, claiming ownership of the designated area and carrying out their work in spite of protests from the locals.
The timing of the work, however, caused several people to express alarm. They questioned why the work was being done after 7 o’clock at night and brought up instances of infrastructure damage in the past.
“Although we have suffered for the past year as a result of this careless work, we are not opposed to smart city initiatives,” they added.
However, locals said that they ought to exercise caution when carrying out these projects as we have been left without power and water. There have also been injuries to persons, a local person added.
