Govt to grant last extension for filing objections

NT NETWORK
Posted on 2009-02-04
PANAJI - The Chief Minister, Mr Digambar Kamat on Tuesday said that the government will give a final extension of one month to the time limit for filing of suggestions/ objections by the gram sabhas/ institutions on the draft Regional Plan 2021, as per their request from the existing deadline of February 15, 2009.
The Chief Minister, addressing the House during the Question Hour also said that if some valid objection is considered by the Town and Country Planning Board as regards the draft Regional Plan 2021, it has to be justified. “The Board will meet and list out the suggestions/ objections before finalising the plan,” he assured.
Stating that the local associations of the engineers and architects have volunteered to provide free explanation to the gram sabhas as regards the draft Regional Plan 2021, the Chief Minister informed that a kit including the Plan and other accessories has already been dispatched to all village panchayats in the state. “The time has come when the government will not be able to enforce anything, from top to bottom,” he stated, pointing out that the individuals in the state will always have grudges against the Plan but the government has to see what the majority of people desire.
The Speaker of the state legislative assembly, Mr Pratapsingh Rane told the treasury benches that the Town and Country Planning Act advises the government to direct the Chief Town Planner about preparation of a regional plan for the state, and that too within a period of six months.
“The state however, has no regional plan for past 8 years since Regional Plan 2001 has been scrapped and the Regional Plan 2021, it appears, would be delayed for a long time and probably not see light of the day,” he predicted, cautioning, “If someone points out to the court of law that the government has failed to provide a regional plan to the state within six months as per the Town and Country Planning Act, the government could be in real trouble.”
The Speaker also pointed out that a number of illegal constructions have come up in the state due to the absence of a comprehensive regional plan. The Leader of the Opposition, Mr Manohar Parrikar said that there are a number of errors in the draft Regional Plan 2021, pointing out “People from the Nuvem village panchayat have complained that the plan shows roads in place of a river in their village.” He also maintained that many of the agricultural areas in the Sattari taluka were missing in the draft of the new regional plan.
The Aldona MLA, Mr Dayanand Narvekar alleging that the Regional Plan 2021 was not prepared as per the rules and regulations, said that according to the law, the Chief Town Planner should have been directed to prepare the new regional plan, and the Town and Country Planning Board should have come into picture, at a later stage.
He also questioned the belief of the members of the Task Force constituted by the government to prepare the Regional Plan 2021, in the plan itself. “One of the members of the Task Force, Mr Edger Rebeiro has already said that the government has been requested to keep the ODP out of the Regional Plan 2021,” the Aldona MLA added. In his reply, the Chief Minister said, “The draft of the Regional Plan 2021 has been signed by all the members of the Task Force and I have nothing to say about the individual views of the members.”