Oppn leader demands white paper on land conversions
Opposition leader Yuri Alemao on Thursday demanded that town and country planning minister Vishwajit Rane table a white paper detailing the total land that has been converted under Sections 16(b), 17(2), and 39A of the Town and Country Planning Act.
While promising to answer the opposition's queries, Rane said that during his tenure, 16-17 lakh sqm of land has been converted, compared to 9.5 crore sqm under the Regional Plan 2021 and 1.5 crore sqm in the year before he became the TCP minister.
'I will answer all questions on Aug 7 in the House. To the extent that I can give answers, I will provide them,' Rane said. 'The leader of the opposition has asked for a white paper, I will give him the numbers.'
Alemao accused Rane of permitting the conversion of eco-sensitive lands for settlement, which would cause irreversible damage to the environment. Alemao demanded a freeze on large residential colonies in villages.
'In 12 years, BJP has done enough damage. Zoning changes are done to benefit the influential and the common Goans are kept in the dark,' Alemao said. 'We need a white paper on all the conversions.'
He said that land conversions and large housing projects have caused stress to villages, roads, and water and electricity supply. 'No scientific study was carried out to determine the carrying capacity of Goa, of its towns and villages. The TCP Act was formulated for structured and regulated growth,' Alemao said.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hindu
29 minutes ago
- The Hindu
BJP accuses Rahul Gandhi of making ‘immature' comments against Armed Forces
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday stated that Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi's credibility is at stake, citing the Supreme Court's remarks during the hearing of a criminal defamation case related to his December 2022 comments on Indo-China border tensions. At a press conference, BJP spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia said: 'Such immature, anti-Army, and demoralising statements made without any evidence or facts, especially when our Army was engaged in the Galwan incident, raise serious questions. Why does Rahul Gandhi make such statements? This is a big question. And it is a question about his credibility.' 'The question arises: Does India deserve a more responsible and better Leader of Opposition? As a Leader of the Opposition, who has taken an oath under the Constitution to safeguard the sovereignty of our country, is he destroying that very sovereignty? ...is he helping the nations which are inimical to our country? Is he demoralising the brave Indian armed forces?' the BJP leader asked. Quoting the Supreme Court's remarks, Mr. Bhatia alleged that this was not the first time Mr. Gandhi had displayed 'such an anti-India' mindset. He referred to another defamation case involving comments by the Congress leader about V.D. Savarkar. 'We all know that the commission-hungry Congress failed to procure Rafale jets for 10 years. Prime Minister Narendra Modi made sure that the Air Force received these aircraft. Displaying similar immaturity, Rahul Gandhi used inappropriate language for the Prime Minister. Subsequently, the Supreme Court's decision affirmed that the addition of Rafale jets strengthened the Air Force and was in India's national interest,' Mr. Bhatia added.
The Hindu
an hour ago
- The Hindu
Monsoon Session: Delhi CM tables two CAG audit reports of AAP term
Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Monday tabled two Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) reports in the Assembly on the performance of the previous Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government. However, there was no discussion on the reports. With this, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government has tabled 10 out of 14 pending CAG reports on AAP's governance. The first report, titled 'Welfare of Building and Other Construction Workers', pointed out several shortcomings in the schemes for construction workers, including unreliable data, duplication of registered workers, and discrepancies in the cess collected from builders for workers' welfare. The Delhi Building and Other Construction Workers' Welfare Board (DBOCWWB) is already facing an Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) probe over registration of 'ghost workers'. The other CAG report, titled 'State Finances for the year 2023-24', highlighted a 55.30% fall in revenue surplus in one year — ₹14,457 crore in 2022-23 to ₹6,462 crore in 2023-24. The report also noted a 'continuous mismatch' between receipts and expenditure, indicating a 'rising fiscal stress'. Responding to CAG's findings regarding the welfare of construction workers, AAP said that Lieutenant-Governor V.K. Saxena and the BJP-led Centre should admit 'that they failed in their primary duty of vigilance and posted corrupt officers in sensitive positions'. 'Many loopholes' About the registration of workers with the DBOCWWB, the report said, 'The availability of duplicate images, images with no faces, and multiple registrations of the same face indicates several loopholes in the registration process.' In its audit spanning four years up to March 2023, the CAG also identified 'huge differences' in the records of cess collectors, district records and the board regarding the total cess collection. 'The difference in figures of the cess as per district records and as per the board for four years amounted to ₹204.95 crore. The differences were not reconciled. The department did not maintain a reconciled database of cess assessed, collected and remitted,' stated the report. A Delhi government official said the board had responded to the CAG's findings with a 'point-by-point' rebuttal, which was not included in the report. 'The discrepancies in data were due to a shift to a newer portal for workers created by the National Informatics Centre. The differences in cess collections were due to some builders depositing the money to the district office and others directly to the board's bank account,' the official added. The official added that the performance audit has neither found any 'ghost worker' in the system nor any embezzlement. L-G to blame: AAP In a statement, AAP said, 'Right from 2015, the BJP-appointed L-G appointed his favourite officers at sensitive positions in the government. It was the BJP-appointed L-G who headed the Vigilance and ACB departments. It was the primary duty of the L-G to prevent corruption.'
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Bill to penalise litterbugs passed
Porvorim: The House passed the crucial Goa Non-Biodegradable Garbage (Control) (Amendment) Bill, which has provision to penalise people caught littering not just public spaces, but private ones too. The bill facilitates a fine of Rs 300 for the first offence, with subsequent offences attracting fines of up to Rs 3 lakh. Opposition leader Yuri Alemao asked why imprisonment as a deterrent was not included in the amendment bill. It was passed after a brief discussion on provisions, and with amendments suggested by Curchorem MLA Nilesh Cabral. The House also passed the Goa Tax on Infrastructure (Amendment) Bill, introduced by TCP minister Vishwajit Rane, which aims to make payment of infrastructure tax by builders and developers easier. Opposition MLAs questioned govt's intent in allowing payments in two installments. To the point raised by Fatorda MLA Vijai Sardesai on whether similar benefits will be extended to Goans for constructing their houses, the CM said such a law is in the pipeline. Passing of the Goa Public Universities Bill, with a provision to facilitate setting up of multi-disciplinary universities was deferred till Friday following Opposition members' demands that the bill be sent to the select committee.
