Illegal Construction at World Heritage site will set a bad precedent: Congress

Goa Pradesh Congress Committee (GPCC) president Girish Chodankar on Friday warned that allowing illegal construction of the bungalow of BJP leader Shaina NC at the World Heritage Site in the Old Goa area will set a bad precedent and will trigger the destruction of heritage places in the state.

Chodankar addressed the media during the protest organised by the Congress Party at the heritage site where the house of the BJP national leader is being constructed within the protected area. He alleged that the BJP government of issuing illegal permissions through the Town and Country Planning (TCP) department and stated that the construction licence issued is also in violation of the law.

The Congress president demanded that all permissions be revoked immediately and all those responsible for issuing illegal licences be suspended, and the construction at the heritage site be demolished at the earliest.

Former Attorney General and party's legal cell chairman Adv Carlos Alvares Fereira said that the 'Nall' technique being used to legalise the structure or Loja is totally illegal.

"Apart from CRZ, the land is a protected site and we will protect all holy sites not only here in Old Goa but also all over Goa," he said.

Congress spokesman Arch Tulio de Souza said that an illegal structure in total violation of the law is being put up in survey number 4/1 in a protected area through misrepresentation and fraud.

De Souza said, "The plot in question is in the core area of a heritage site protected under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains (AMASR) Act 1958 and Rules 1959, where only token repairs-of an existing structure is permitted, in this case, a small hut. This is also part of the NDZ falling within 100 metres of the Mandovi River as per the 2011 Notification of the CRZ."

( With inputs from ANI )

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