Objections to the draft Gram Sabha rules

Date: 24^th April 2018

To,

The Director of Panchayats

and Ex-Officio Joint Secretary to the Government of Goa,

3^rd Lift, 3^rd Floor, Junta House,

Panjim, Goa

Subject: Objections to the draft rules concerning Gram Sabha meetings

Sir,

We write to object draft Rules concerning Goa Panchayat Gram Sabha meetings as notified via no.38/DP/TP/ELN/2017/2312 and published in official gazette – Govt of Goa series I No 2 dated 12^th April, 2018 regarding draft further amendment to the Goa Panchayats (Gram Sabha Meetings) Rules, 1996.

We object to one sentence in the substitution of Rule 7 as “No subject shall be discussed in such meetings besides the Agenda as approved by the Gram Sabha”.

We want to let you know that there several people in Goa who does not know to write and for them only way of expression in Gram Sabha is in speaking out their concerns. You cannot make rules like this to stop people from speaking on the spot at Gram Sabhas for it may lead to serious consequences of law and order and accumulation of unexpressed views.

We recommend that Gram Sabha meetings be kept open for discussions under A.O.B (Any Other Business) point.

Thanking you,

Yours sincerely

Maggie Silveira

President, Goa State

Rohidas Andrade

Convenor, Bambolim Unit

Sanjay Pereira

Convenor, Cacra Unit

Socorro Braganza

Convenor, Siridao Unit

Sitaram Pereira

Convenor, Odxel Unit

Milind Palkar

Convenor, Nauxim Unit

Anthony Cardozo

Convenor, Curca Unit

Call for Boycott of Panchayat Elections 2017 in Goa

Panchayat elections in Goa are scheduled to be held on June 11, 2017. We observed that Panchayat powers to decide for the village has been taken away by two recent laws. One law is Goa Investment Promotion Act 2014 passed by Goa Government and second law is The National Waterways Act, 2016 of the Central government.

Goa Investment Promotion Act overrides Panchayats and  powers are taken away, and Panchayats have become Powerless in final decision makings etc. Several Panchayat and municipal areas such as Vanxim-Malar (Capao), Bambolim-Nauxim, Sancoale, Amdoi-Sanguem etc are brought under the ambit of Investment Promotion and facilitation Board (IPB) and declared as Investment Promotion Areas (IPA) e.g. Vanxim in order to facilitate massive land grabs by private corporate interests. Powers of decision making are taken away from the local Panchayats and given to the Secretary (Panchayats) who is always an IAS officer appointed to Goa by the Central Government (Delhi). When Panchayats in Goa are ruled from Delhi for the benefit of private corporate through this law then election to the Panchayats in Goa is a façade and must be boycotted till this law is scrapped.

The National Waterways Act, 2016 has taken control over Goa’s six rivers – Sal, Zuari, Mandovi, Mapusa/Moira, Chapora and Cumbharjua to the Inland Waterways Authority of India based in Gurgaon, Haryana. Its package that along with the rivers that pass through several village Panchayats jurisdiction central government rule extends to all the portions of attached village lands by virtue of Inland Waterways Authority of India Act, 1985. The reason is to get funds for dredging of rivers in Goa damaging fishing while benefiting mining, tourism and gambling involved Corporate. Dredging is known to cause ecological damage from NGT study on MPT dredging of Arabian Sea near Vasco. With Goa’s rivers taken over by Central Government will make fishermen livelihood miserable branding them as trespassers by invoking section 35 (j) of Inland Waterways Authority of India Act, 1985. 

Central Governments’ this decision is against common people of Goa and in collaboration with Goa Government. This is total bulldozing of Panchayat rule and elections to Panchayat in presence of this law over Goa are mockery.

Bharat Mukti Morcha therefore calls for boycott of Panchayat Election in Goa till the above two laws are repealed.

Sd/-

Maggie Silveira, President, Goa Unit

Bharat Mukti Morcha condemns Chief Town Planner Puttaraju

It is indeed a great matter of concern to get to know the letter dated 5^th February 2013 addressed to the Director, Directorate of Panchayat sent by Chief Town Planner S.T. Puttaraju that the Gram Sabha stands no value as Chief Town Planner declares on the letter sent to the director of Panchayats stating that Gram Sabha has no power to pass resolutions regarding construction of multi-family dwellings and requesting the Town and Country Planning Department to stop issuing NOCs for multi family buildings.

Under what authority the so called legal experts according to Chief Town Planner Puttaraju declare our very people’s rights at the Gram Sabha to be null and void? Is this called a democracy?

What is the very purpose of the people coming to Gram Sabha? Aren’t they the voters of their very Panchayat and Constituency as well? What is the Puttaraju up to? Is he the destroyer of our beautiful Goa? Is this the way he is going to work as Chief Town Planner for Goa? He is only going to be a hypocrite working in this manner. 

People of Goa, specially mulnivasis are no more fools. We know where to stand for, how to stand for and whom to stand for. This will not be tolerated by the entire Goan mulnivasi people.

Puttaraju has fooled himself and he will not be able to fool any of the mulnivasi people of Goa.

Gram Sabha should and must have the powers to pass the required resolutions as people of that particular Panchayat will know and understand the entire problem and situation arising in that particular village. Puttaraju will only sit in Panjim not knowing the real problems, situations and accuracies people endure in that particular village.

So Gram Sabha has to have full privileged rights to pass meaningful resolutions at the Gram Sabha after every three months. So it is not a big job for Chief Town Planner Puttaraju to receive from each panchayat of Goa resolutions four times a year.

So the Chief Town Planner Puttaraju whoever your legal advisors are - whose names are not disclosed- keep them for yourselves; not for the mulnivasi people of Goa. Mulnivasi People of Goa cannot be fooled any more. Our resolutions in the Gram Sabha are for the good of the people of Goa. We will stand by for our Gram Sabhas in passing the required resolutions. Puttaraju the Chief Town Planner, we want to live by our given rights not only as voters of the Panchayat and the constituency but also as true citizen of Goa, India.

Bharat Mukti Morcha condemns this letter of Chief Town Planner curtailing rights of citizens participating in Gram Sabhas in Goa. This letter is nothing but the agenda of the Bamon Raj that is outlined in the Goa Vision 2035 and road map to achieve it with Parshuram- the enemy of mulnivasi people on the cover of this document that is meant to establish Bamon Raj in camouflaged manner. This letter is fit to go in thrash bin.