The residents of Sancoale village in Goa have been opposing the construction of a mega housing-cum-commercial project, named Adora De Goa, spread across 20 hectares. The proposed project will offer sea-facing residential homes, retail spaces with high-street coffee shops, restaurants, spa and boutiques. A full-fledged hotel/service apartment is also proposed to be built and operated by "The Park Hotels".
Construction of the project started in August 2019. In September, hundreds of residents from Cortalim constituency, along with environmental activists, held a peaceful protest rally from Chicalim to Sancoale plateau to oppose the project.
The residents have alleged that the land was leased by the original owners, Communidade of Sancoale (an association with collective ownership of land), to agro-chemical firm Zuari for setting up an industry, but the land was fraudulently sold off by Zuari to a real estate company. The people in the village have opposed the project since 2016 citing it an environmental and infrastructure burden, especially with regard to water and electricity.
According to the Environmental Impact Assessment, submitted to the Goa State Environmental Impact Assessment Authority in 2016, the daily requirement of water for the project during the operational phase will be 2,285.33 cubic metres per day, equivalent to the daily water requirement of two to three villages in Goa. The sewage output is expected to be 1,433 cubic metres per day, which will finally trickle down the villages of Sancoale, Chicalim and Dabolim and destroy the wells, ponds and other water bodies. Solid, non-biodegradable waste generated per day from the housing project will be around 2,243 kg.
"This single project is equivalent to three medium-sized villages in Goa in terms of population affected, water consumption and waste generated. This is against the principle of sustainable development. We do not want such destructive projects on our land which our ancestors have preserved for us," Swapnesh Sherlekar, co-convenor of Goencho Avaaz, told LCW.
The still under construction housing project is expected to be completed by 2023. A real estate broker, who is based in the area and did not wish to be named, told LCW that, “the construction is going on at the same spot. Many units are almost ready and several people have already purchased flats at the property.” He added that the protests against the projects have stopped as all the permits are in place. Records on the Goa Rera website show that the Panchayat has approved the project. While protests on ground against the protest have ended.
Captain Viriato Fernandes, a member of the Indian National Congress and who was part of the protests earlier as a member of the Goencho Avaaz, told LCW that, “some people who were opposing the project compromised; one by one, they started backing out. The panchayat members, who had pledged their support, backed out. We were told that they were taken care of.”
Demand/Contention of the Affected Community
Refusal to give up land for the project
Opposition against environmental degradation
Demand to retain/protect access to common land/resources
Other Demand/Contention of the Affected Community
Region Classification
Urban
Type of Land
Common
What was the action taken by the police?
How many people did the police detain or arrest?
What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?
Did the person face any violence while in police custody?
If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?
If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?
Legislation under which the accused was charged
Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?
In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?
Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?
Details of sources (names of accused, names and numbers of any lawyers, names of any police officers contacted)
Status of Project
Project underway despite protests
Original Project Deadline
Whether the Project has been Delayed
Significance of Land to Land Owners/Users
Other Natural Resource extraction/dependence, Other environmental services
Whether the project was stalled due to land conflict
Source/Reference
Total investment involved (in Crores):
₹
500
Type of investment:
Investment Expected
Year of Estimation
2018
Has the Conflict Ended?
Yes
When did it end?
October/November 2019
Why did the conflict end?
Community forced to give up their demand by the opposing party
The people who were protesting the project backed out of the protests.
Categories of Legislations Involved in the Conflict
Environmental Laws, Procedural Laws
Legislations/Policies Involved
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Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Whether claims/objections were made as per procedure in the relevant statute
What was the claim(s)/objection(s) raised by the community?
What was the Decision of the Concerned Government Department?
Legal Processes and Loopholes Enabling the Conflict:
Violation of environmental laws
Legal Status:
Out of Court
Status of Case In Court
Whether any adjudicatory body was approached
Name of the adjudicatory body
Name(s) of the Court(s)
Case Number
Main Reasoning/Decision of court
Major Human Rights Violations Related to the Conflict:
Whether criminal law was used against protestors:
Reported Details of the Violation:
Date of Violation
Location of Violation
Government Departments Involved in the Conflict:
Goa Town and Country Planning Department, Goa State Environment Impact Assessment Authority
PSUs Involved in the Conflict:
Did LCW Approach Government Authorities for Comments?
No
Name, Designation and Comment of the Government Authorities Approached
Corporate Parties Involved in the Conflict:
Provident Housing Limited, Puravankara Limited, Larsen and Toubro, Trinitas Realtors India LLP
Did LCW Approach Corporate Parties for Comments?
No
Communities/Local Organisations in the Conflict:
Residents
What was the action taken by the police?
How many people did the police detain or arrest?
What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?
Did the person face any violence while in police custody?
If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?
If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?
Legislation under which the accused was charged
Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?
In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?
Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?
Were there any other notable irregularities that took place, or other significant details?
Anamika is an environmental lawyer based in Goa. She works with the Goa Foundation and the civil society in matters of environmental law and human rights, with a primary focus on issues arising from illegal mining, pollution, violation of coastal regulations and unsustainable planning. She is currently working on research related to conflict between tourism and wildlife/marine habitat conservation.
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