Team Goemkarponn
VELSAO: Cortalim MLA Anton Vas on Thursday criticised Monday’s protest near the railway track in Velsao, alleging that the agitation was creating confusion instead of addressing the concerns of people affected by the railway double-tracking project.
Addressing the media in Velsao along with social worker Roquezinho D’Souza, Vas questioned the demands raised during the protest and described the gathering near the railway track as a “float parade”. He said it was necessary to distinguish between demands for restoration of access and opposition to the double-tracking project.
D’Souza challenged political leaders and other stakeholders to an open debate on the issue. He questioned how the Railways’ name came to be reflected in land records and why the concerned landowners had allegedly not raised objections earlier.
He also alleged that some people who had previously opposed the project later accepted compensation running into crores of rupees after offering their land for the project and had since remained silent.
Vas said the double-tracking issue had been pending since 2011 and questioned why it had not been resolved earlier despite several MLAs and ministers representing the Cortalim constituency.
“The issue is not recent and has been ongoing since 2011, while I became the MLA in 2022. Why was the issue not solved since then despite several MLAs and even ministers being in power from the Cortalim constituency?” Vas asked.
He said the double-tracking project from Collem to Vasco covered around 75 kilometres, with only about half a kilometre of the stretch in Velsao remaining incomplete.
“This project may not be scrapped for half a kilometre. At this stage, the best we can do is solve the problems and issues of the affected people. We can find solutions and help them,” Vas said.
The MLA said that after becoming MLA, he had invited affected residents to his office to understand their concerns and explore possible solutions. However, he claimed that some residents were unwilling to discuss individual problems and instead insisted that the entire project be scrapped.
Vas said he had suggested approaching the Railways to address specific concerns, including protecting houses and providing necessary infrastructure. He claimed that several issues had already been addressed, including saving houses, constructing an underpass at Cansaulim and providing chequered-paver pathways to several houses in Velsao.
“My only request is that we can come together and solve the issue instead of creating a mess and misleading people through protests when the project is almost complete,” Vas said.
Responding to criticism over his absence from Monday’s protest, Vas said he was in Panaji that day and maintained that he remained accessible to residents of his constituency.
“If they want access, we can always sort out the issue by sitting across the table. They should not misguide people in the name of protests for publicity,” Vas said, challenging the protest leaders to come forward for a debate on the legalities and actual issues involved.
