The following article appeared in the Navhind Times, Mon 14. It is a real shocker!
To end the long saga of finalisation and notification of the Regional Plan 2021, it could be notified part by part or even village by village, informed top government officials. And if this view of some influential officials in the Town and Country Planning department and the government is taken into consideration, then the RP2021 will finally be seen being implemented shortly. At present, work of superimposing the changes and digitalisation - village wise - of the RP 2021 is on. After this the plan will be scrutinised by the committee. “It is my opinion that the regional plan should be notified part by part, village by village. However, the committee will finally decide on this and then the government will have to take a decision,” the chief town planner, Mr Morad Ahmed told media. He said that he had discussed this with a few senior members of the administration and they were of similar views. Arguing on the logic that “because of the problems in the coastal belt why should the plans of rest of Goa be kept in abeyance,” he said that this move would set the ball in motion as far as the whole planning process of the state was concerned, including the notification of sensitive areas like eco-sensitive zones. “It will give relief to the people,” he stressed but stated that this would be finally done only on the “recommendations of the state level committee.” It may be recalled that the RP2011 was scrapped after massive protests by the people and the government was forced to appoint a task force to formulate a new regional plan. A cabinet decision in January 2007 had led to the denotification of the Regional Plan 2011 and drawing up of a fresh regional plan for the next 10 years, up to 2017. The Chief Minister at that time and the Speaker today, Mr Pratapsing Rane had then said that the Town and Country Planning Board would be asked to engage a reputed planning firm to draw up a new plan, which would be completed in 3-4 months. Mr Rane had said that latest technology, including satellite imaging, would be used for drawing up the plan in which the government forest, the coastal regulation zone area, water bodies, etc, which do not figure in the Regional Plan 2011, would be marked and put up for public scrutiny. However, ultimately, the draft Regional Plan 2021, was submitted to the Chief Minister, Mr Digambar Kamat in September 2008 by the Task Force, put before the TCP board, notified and then placed before the public for their objections and suggestions. At that time it was thought that the scrutiny of the suggestions and objections as well as the finalisation of the Regional Plan for Goa 2021, for notification and implementation would probably be done by March 15. However, this was further extended and an April 15 deadline was given for accepting suggestions and objections for the Regional Plan 2021, with figures before the final date being around 2,700 with another 600 to 800 suggestions and objections expected before the cut off date. Also, almost all gram sabhas had put up objections and suggestion through their respective block development officers as of now. The suggestions as well as objections coming from the general public mostly include corrections and changes in the Regional Plan. Delays in handing over the RP 2009 kits to nine municipalities around the state, though the village panchayats received the same in time had also contributed to the overall delay.
