Goa Monuments in grave danger with new Act *Prajal Sakhardande is worried that the amended Monuments Act gifts Goa’s monuments to any developer to re-erect or re-construct and no one can approach the courts to stop this robbery of our heritage*
*What are the amendments that have shocked heritage lovers all over Goa?* Our basic objection is why was the need for the Government of Goa to make any amendments to the original and perfectly comprehensive Goa Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1978. That was a good Act where the government was merely the caretaker of the monuments of Goa which belong to the people of Goa. The monuments were to be looked after, i.e. maintained, preserved and conserved by the Archaeological Department in a caretaker capacity. In the new Amendment to the 1978 Act which has been called The Goa Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains (Amendment) Act, 2010 the “maintenance” clause has been substituted to include “re-construction” and “re-erection” of the monument. It is also in force retrospectively from March 1, 2007. This means that the monuments – forts, churches, chapels, temples can be pulled down and rebuilt. *What are you specifically objecting to? * This Act is highly unconstitutional. It was made into an Act when the Bill was signed by the Governor of Goa Dr S S Sidhu. We object to a number of clauses in the Act; especially the one which says the Government of Goa can invite any other agency or private party to take over the monument. The private party, let’s say a hotel developer from Delhi or Dubai, or Mumbai, can re-construct or re-erect a monument and turn it into a hotel. It could be a Delhi hotel developer. *But surely you or I can approach the courts to stop the gifting away of our heritage? * You and I or any member of the public will not be able to go to court. This is by far the worst clause which says that the courts cannot take cognizance of any case filed by a member of the public. A suit or application can only be filed by the government or after getting permission of the government. And the Governor of Goa S S Sidhu gave his assent to the Bill seeking to amend the Act of 1978. That is why we have written him a letter expressing our fears and protest, but he has not chosen to reply yet. *Have you made your objections known to other authorities? * We have written to the Governor, to the Chief Minister, to INTACH to every concerned authority, but we have not received a single reply. We have to stop this Act. As a last, a very last resort, we will file a PIL in the High Court. We will give them some more time to reply to us. If they do not then we have to do something about it. This is our heritage they are playing with. This belongs to us and to the generations to come. *Can heritage activists work with the Church to get this Act revoked or restored to what it was in 1978? * Yes we can, because there are many churches and chapels in the list of 51 protected monuments. *What is the significance of the clause “in retrospect from March 1, 2007”? * If a letter of intent was issued to a developer on March 1, 2007, allowing him to re-erect or re-construct a fort, then he can take over the fort today and do pretty much as he pleases. We cannot stop him, because the Act forbids the courts from taking cognizance of any cases filed by the public. Our monuments which bind us to our past will be gone forever from our possession. There are those who would say, so what, let the monuments be used commercially, at least the government will earn some money from them. Would they be wrong? Yes, they would be wrong. Take a quiet village. The fort will be turned into a five star luxury resort. What is going to happen? Shops will come up, taxis, rickshaws, motorbikes, housing will be built for the staff of the hotel and all the ancillary industries. The poor will string up hutments in the fields and every vacant piece of land. Water and electricity will be diverted to the newcomers. The demography of the village will change with the number of outsiders pouring in. No sewerage, no waste management. Is that what we want? The villages of Goa will have to decide. And they will have to decide soon. *Can you name some of the monuments and the villages they lie in?* 1. The Church & Convent of St Francis Xavier, Old Goa 2. Our Lady of the Mount, Old Goa 3. Santa Monica Convent Chapel of the Growing Cross, Old Goa 4. College of St Populo, Old Goa 5. Church of St Peter, Old Goa 6. Gunpowder Factory wall, Ribandar 7. Casa do Polvora, Panvelim 8. Chapel of St Jeronimo, Chorao 9. British Cemetery at Donapaula 10. Franciscan Church of Reis Magos which was the first church in Bardez. 11. Juvem Fort at St Estevam 12. Chapora Fort 13. Temple of Saptakoteshwar, at Narve. 14. Khorjuvem Fort is in immediate danger of being taken over. 15. Cudnem Jain Temple 16. Namazgah at Bicholim 17. Adilshahi Masjid at Surlapar 18. Alorna Fort 19. Shigao Cave 20. Cabo de Rama, Canacona 21. Gate of Rachol Fortress 22. Mormugao Fort 23. Agapur Madhavdev temple 24. Kundaim Cave 25. Khandepar Cave 26. Rivona Buddhist cave 27. Aquem Cave 28. Mahalsa Tank 29. Chandreshwar Temple Paroda 30. Pansaimal rock art 31. Kajzur rock art 32. Consua math 33. Vichundrem Naryandev temple near Rivona 34. Nagueshi temple 35. Kamakshi temple 36. Jain Bhakti temple Bandode 37. Ancient Site of Shantadurga temple at Kelshi 38. Ancient site of Ramnath Temple at Loutolim 39. Ishwar Bhat at Khandepar 40. Saptakoteshwar temple at Opa Khandepar 41. Tiracol Fort which has already been damaged by a hotelier 42. Our Lady of Saude, Sancoale