Quepem, Jun 17 (TOI): Stop-work order has been issued by the deputy collector of the district flying squad to the owner of a petrol pump for filling up a low lying area in Guddi, Paroda in Quepem taluka.
Social activist Dilip Hegde had lodged a complaint in the office of the senior town planner of the TCP, Margao, against the petrol pump owner. Hegde had alleged that landfilling had been carried out over the last one year to fill up the low-lying paddy fields.
The deputy collector accompanied by a flying squad carried out an inspection at the site and found that the reclamation has been done beyond the area permitted by the department. No retaining wall has been constructed at the site. A show cause notice and stop work order has been issued to the party for violating Section 17 (A) of TCP Act of 1974, which is a cognizable offence.
The flying squad also sent a notice to the administrator of comunidades, south zone, Margao, for taking appropriate action under the Goa Land Prohibition Of Construction Act, 1995. Deputy town planner P Bandodkar, who sent the show cause notice to the party, said that the owner has violated condition no. 6 by not displaying the permission obtained on the board.
As per the records, permission was granted to the party by the chief town planner in 2008 to reclaim a limited area in public interest for storage of limited litres of class A and class B petroleum products.
The petrol pump was in operation in an area of around 2,000 sq mt in survey no. 24/1 and 24/2 since 2008. A retaining wall covered its boundaries. The complainant also stated that the lower portion of the hill which is adjacent to the petrol pump has been devastated by excavation for filling of the paddy field. Many houses constructed below the hill are in imminent danger of a landslide due to the hill-cutting activity, he alleged.
Speaking to TOI, senior town planner James Mathew, after inspecting the site, said that permission given by the chief town planner in 2008 for filling of lowlying land needs to be confirmed and the actual extent of filling work needs to be reassessed as per the actual requirement. "I will write to the chief town planner to review the earlier permission granted in 2008 and cancel/revoke the landfilling permission beyond the petrol pump which is already secured with boundary wall," stated Mathew. "The permission issued in 2008 does not specify the area and does not have the validity for filling of lowlying paddy fields," stated Ajit Panchwadkar, deputy collector.
"TCP has granted the permission for landfilling in lowlying agricultural land for the sole purpose of petrol pump but now the owner is trying to build a hotel with rooms on the left side of the Margao-Quepem main road," stated Hegde.