DEPUTY Chief Minister Francis D’Souza, who is also the Town and Country Planning Minister, has assured that the government would soon draw a phase-wise programme to notify Regional Plan 2021. Let us hope the government does it soonest. The notification has been hanging fire for quite long on account of objections from political parties, civil society groups and individual land owners. When the BJP was in opposition it too opposed its notification without resolution of the issues. But on coming to power, the BJP realized that the draft Regional Plan 2021 had not given room for a rejection or major overhaul, but a plethora of objections that were either not sustainable or could be taken care of without any fundamental changes. There were 3,500 discrepancies pointed out in the draft, 90 per cent of whom had “personal” interests in mind, which could be easily rectified. Of the 190 village panchayats, only in 10 panchayats some major discrepancies were found whose redressal required a major exercise. The government needs to hasten the process of redressal in order to notify the plan at the earliest.
It is absurd to note that a draft regional plan to which no objections at all had been raised in 174 of 190 panchayats (over 90 per cent of panchayats) has been held up from notification for a few years. Regional planning is land use planning which is so essential for Goa. The people of the state are very conscious and alert about control over development. Environment concerns have been expressed over every development project. And you can hardly blame the people on every occasion, in every case. There have been unexceptionally objectionable government approvals of land use changes in many cases in the past. At the individual level too, Goans in several cases have made arbitrary land use changes. They have also got changes in land use made for their holdings using their influence with their elected representatives. There is a need to put Regional Plan 2021 in place in order to impose a regime of land use planning and development control. This plan was made by experts of impeccable integrity in the larger interest of protecting Goa’s ecology and yet promoting controlled development of the state.
Of course, much depends on the government and the panchayati raj institutions to adhere strictly to the Regional Plan once it is notified. The vision of the experts who drew up the plan can remain just a dream without a firm commitment of the government to follow it in every respect without fear or favour. They should never forget that a planned and controlled land use and development alone can fulfill the people’s needs for housing, employment, basic services like water and electricity, clean air, transport, education and health care and recreation. That’s how we can have the industries and businesses as well as roads, schools, hospitals, water works and public parks in the right places. Some of the damages done to Goa’s environment cannot be reversed. But any further damage can be prevented. The prevention is possible only by regulating property development – both commercial/industrial and personal property development – and allowing it in an appropriate place in accordance with inviolable policies and standards. Some might be driven to think strict land use planning would make life difficult for trade and industry. This is a misconception. Orderly and rational development of land is in the interest of trade and industry too. Of course, with strict implementation of Regional Plan, the fundamental difference from the past could be that that development is done to meet the needs of the Goan people in a sustainable manner. It is their needs that will drive development, not the needs of investors. Only, the BJP government and panchayati raj institutions must not break trust with the Goans and deliver on their commitment on this score fully.
First Wall of Defence
THE Modi government proposes to introduce an amendment to the Prevention of Corruption Act that promises more room for decision making ‘without fear of implication’ by bureaucrats. Obviously, this change is driven by the organized lobby of senior bureaucrats who have been able to persuade the Modi cabinet not to allow a bureaucrat to be named and prosecuted for favouring a business organisation unless there is a ‘reciprocal proof’ of the business organization receiving favours from them and they receiving favours from the business organisation. Now, the bureaucrats know very well that it would not be easy for investigating agencies to prove the reciprocity. Are we not aware that even though such reciprocal favours are common very few bureaucrats are ever named and prosecuted for such charges? Even otherwise, investigation, prosecution and conviction have been a very length and uncertain process in cases of corruption in high places. With this new requirement of ‘reciprocal proof’ the corrupt bureaucrats have created a first wall of defence for themselves. There won’t be any case in the first place!