logo
Now, TCP approves conversion of 1L sqm land under Sec 39A

Now, TCP approves conversion of 1L sqm land under Sec 39A

Time of India05-06-2025
The airstrip and hangar at Michael Boren's Hell Roaring Ranch in the Sawtooth National Recreation Area in Idaho, May 30, 2025. Boren, nominated by President Trump to lead the Forest Service, is accused of threatening trail workers with a helicopter, building an airstrip without a permit and putting a cabin on federal property. (Aaron Agosto/The New York Times)
Panaji:
The Town and Country Planning (TCP) department has approved the conversion of just over 1 lakh sqm of land that was earlier classified as orchard and natural cover.
The TCP board cleared the five applications for land conversion under Section 39A of the Goa Town and Country Planning Act after 'due consideration of the suggestions' received during a 30-day window, said Vertika Dagur, TCP's chief town planner (planning).
Dagur said the alteration and conversion of the five plots in the Regional Plan, 2021, will be subject to the outcome of the writ petitions pending before the high court.
The PIL, filed by Goa Foundation, challenges the provisions of Section 39A, alleging that they allow arbitrary and ad hoc conversions of privately owned plots within the Regional Plan and notified outline development plans, which could lead to unplanned and undesirable development in Goa.
Of the 1 lakh sqm that was put up for conversion, nearly 69,129sqm falls in Pernem's Parcem village. The entire tranche of land was converted for residential housing.
The TCP department said that it examined the five proposals along with scrutiny reports before placing the applications before the TCP board for its decision.
Dagur said govt has also approved the change of zone for the five plots.
'Therefore, in view of the recommendation of the Goa TCP board being approved by govt and in exercise of the powers conferred by Section 39A of the Goa TCP Act, the Regional Plan and the outline development plan is hereby altered and modified as specified,' Dagur said.
Section 39 of the TCP Act garnered attention after the HC read down Section 17(2) of the Goa Town and Country Planning (TCP) Act, which the department was using to facilitate land conversion in the Regional Plan and outline development plans.
The high court had observed that 'plot-by-plot conversion' under Section 17(2) 'virtually has the effect of mutilating the Regional Plan' and thus the scope of the law had to be narrowed.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Goa govt to legalise over 1 lakh houses existing prior to 1972
Goa govt to legalise over 1 lakh houses existing prior to 1972

Time of India

time3 hours ago

  • Time of India

Goa govt to legalise over 1 lakh houses existing prior to 1972

Panaji: In a major decision to legalise houses in the state that are facing the threat of demolition, state govt on Friday issued two circulars. One was by the revenue department and the other by the directorate of panchayat, to legalise over one lakh illegal houses that existed prior to 1972 on any land. Chief minister Pramod Sawant said that these circulars do not give any ownership rights on the land, but they legalise the structure and clarify the land status. 'We are making houses legal. The revenue department will give sanand, and the panchayat will give status as legal,' he said. Sawant said that with these circulars, there is no need to bring any bills in the assembly. A few minutes before the press conference to announce the circulars, both Sawant and revenue minister Atanasio 'Babush' Monserrate made a statement on the floor of the House that govt will bring a bill to regularise the houses. Sawant said that to clear the confusion in villages about illegal structures, govt has issued two circulars. He said that if the house is shown on the survey plan but does not have any document, then the owner of the house should go to the deputy collector and apply for the sanad. He said that once the sanad is issued by the deputy collector under this circular, and in case the owner of the house needs to construct a new house, then the same sanad can be used. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like No annual fees for life UnionBank Credit Card Apply Now Undo The circular said that the Goa Land Revenue Code, 1968, has exempted all lands (survey holdings) situated in the settlement zone, as per the Regional Plan/Outline Development Plan, from the operation of provisions. This is provided the survey records of such survey show the existence of a structure on the said land, the total area of the survey holding does not exceed 1,000sqm, and the existing structure, as shown in the survey map, covers at least 25% of the total area of the said plot. However, govt found that in several cases, structures which are already in existence and are duly reflected in the records of rights (Form I and XIV) as well as in the survey plans prepared under the provisions of the Goa, Daman and Diu Land Revenue Code, 1968 (during the period 1970 to 1972) are being required to obtain a fresh conversion sanad at the time of reconstruction. 'This has led to certain ambiguities and inconsistent interpretations across departments regarding the applicability of the conversion provisions under the Goa Land Revenue Code, 1968,' govt said.

Democrats' ‘Autopsy' Flop
Democrats' ‘Autopsy' Flop

Hindustan Times

time12 hours ago

  • Hindustan Times

Democrats' ‘Autopsy' Flop

It's hard to know who is currently winning the contest for 2024 ostrichism: A Democratic Party conducting an election 'autopsy' that ignores Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, or the hooting media that ignores everything beyond the Biden/Harris campaign disaster. It is this echo chamber that elected Donald Trump twice, and the question is when the left will remember that voters are the ones who pick the president. The New York Times's revelation that the Democratic National Committee's 2024 campaign autopsy won't touch on Mr. Biden's decision to run again, his coronation of Ms. Harris, or her key decisions, is certainly worth a skewering. As is the news that the report will instead devote most of its attention to 'outside groups,' including the party's main SuperPAC, which apparently lost Democrats the whole kaboodle by misallocating advertising dollars. The Times story sent writers racing for the best comparison put-down. An autopsy that lacked Biden/Harris, said the Times, was like 'eating at a steakhouse and then reviewing the salad.' No, said the Nation, it was like 'a production of Hamlet that leaves out not just the Prince of Denmark but also Claudius, Gertrude, the Ghost, and Ophelia.' Actually, said a Republican consultant in the Hill, it was like 'doing John F. Kennedy's autopsy, and only examining his feet.' Fair enough, if obvious. Of course it mattered that the Biden inner circle chose to spend half of 2024 on a remake of 'Weekend at Bernie's.' Of course it mattered that Mr. Biden then anointed a woman who'd never won a single presidential primary vote, who'd become a liability as vice president, and who then ran a policy-free campaign centered on joy, media-avoidance and accusations of fascism. Obvious, too, because deflection and finger-pointing are now de rigeur in the Democratic Party. In 2017, Hillary Clinton blamed her humiliating loss on sabotage by Russia, sexism, Jim Comey and an insufficiently prostrate press corps. The party blamed its 2022 midterm House loss on the public's failure to understand the brilliance of Mr. Biden's spending and economic agenda. Yet the mainstream media's willful insistence that the loss must be put down solely to Biden/Harris is equally comedic. The coverage is almost desperate to insist that the left's only problem is the messenger—and the means of messaging. Which puts the media in the exact same spot as the 'autopsy' it ridicules, as that document is headed to a finding that the party needs someone who does a better job of 'connecting' and 'explaining,' and who doubles down on organizing. What both camps studiously ignore is the voter verdict. That is, the voters who last year decisively rejected the progressive agenda that defines today's Democratic Party. A real autopsy would focus almost entirely on the unpopularity of the ideas that animate the political left: open borders, unrestrained spending, union power, climate diktats, police-bashing, anti-Israel sentiment, identity politics. It would note not just the polls showing this rejection, but the proof in the form of recent, extraordinary demographic shifts that show a left losing its grip on whole categories of once reliable voter groups. A real autopsy would meditate on the disconnect between a nation that wants the freedom to build, grow and achieve, and a Democratic Party increasingly obsessed with locking up and redistributing a government-micromanaged ecosystem. It might even consider a case study of, say, San Francisco, for some evidence of how its policies fail in practice, and how voters respond on issues like crime or education. A few liberal policy wonks are feeling out a new direction—see the talk of an 'abundance' agenda—yet party leaders have so far resolutely refused to go there. An honest examination would drill in to the failure of eight years of lawfare, the party's decision to weaponize government for political gain. It would ask if the partisan ambitions that fuel the progressive left's calls to end the legislative filibuster, nationalize election laws, pack the Supreme Court or abolish the Electoral College are worth the distrust they sow among average voters who want stability. It would question what internal or cultural dysfunction allowed an entire Democratic establishment to salute a misguided leader, and worse, to excoriate those rare individuals (Dean Phillips) with the backbone to warn of a coming trainwreck. None of this will happen, for a simple reason. The progressive left remains a minority in the liberal movement, but its true believers nonetheless occupy all the positions of power, including the leadership of the DNC (and most Beltway press jobs). They won't criticize their basic world view. If change is to come to the Democratic Party—and it will—expect it to come in the form of a charismatic outsider who shows a new way, not via a pro forma autopsy by an insular claque that has no real regrets over the course that actually lost them an election. Write to kim@

Allow a 30-minute discussion on TCP Act's Sec 39: GFP to speaker
Allow a 30-minute discussion on TCP Act's Sec 39: GFP to speaker

Time of India

timea day ago

  • Time of India

Allow a 30-minute discussion on TCP Act's Sec 39: GFP to speaker

Porvorim: Following the town and country planning department's refusal to respond to legislative assembly questions (LAQ) related to land conversions, the Goa Forward Party (GFP) approached speaker Ramesh Tawadkar seeking a 30-minute discussion on Section 39A of the TCP Act. GFP MLA Vijai Sardesai's request followed Tawadkar's decision to adjourn the House for 10 minutes because of the protest by the opposition MLA in the legislative assembly. The opposition MLAs were protesting against the TCP department's move to deny replies, claiming that the matter is sub judice. Rane provided a standard reply to several LAQs, claiming that 'the subject matter is sub judice under Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business of the Goa Legislative Assembly' and thus the LAQ could not be responded to.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store