Land conversions allowed, but as per RP21
GOANEWS DESK, PANAJI | 06 June 2012 23:40 IST
The government has decided to follow Regional Plan 2021 to decide land use as per eco-sensitive zones and village panchayat categories for FAR, contrary to its earlier announcement that the plan is being frozen.
The order issued in this regard by the town and country planning on 4 June states that RP2001 would be used only as a reference plan to determine the land use while issuing NOCs for development or land conversion.
The order also makes it clear that RP21 is not being denotified but put on hold.
Chief town planner S T Puttaraju has directed the officials that pending drafting and notification of the fresh plan, they should follow the FAR policy and height of buildings, categorising of village panchayats as VP1, VP2 is to be as per RP 2021.
The order states that “for the purpose of allowing the developmental activities in the state the government has decided to put certain restrictions and guidelines to ensure that genuine developments are permitted keeping in mind the apprehensions raised on RP 2021”.
The government had earlier issued a directive on 9 April that “all projects, proposals which are based upon the Regional Plan 2021 were to be kept in abeyance with effect from March 20, 2012 till the government takes the appropriate decision in the matter.”
Accordingly the government had stopped issuing NOCs for land conversion.
However, the fresh order now allows issuing of NOCs for applications prior to 9 April, but as per the land use mentioned in RP21.
RP21 has categorised the villages as VP1 and VP2.
The FAR in VP1 category has been allowed up to 80, but is being brought down further to only 60 beyond the area of 4000 sq mts.
Most of the coastal area however is brought down to VP2 category. The FAR in the coastal belt would be only 60 and it would be brought down to 50 if the area exceeds 4000 sq mts.
In case of eco-sensitive zones, Eco 1 is almost 54 per cent of Goa, consisting of all forests (Govt and Pvt) including sanctuaries and mangroves, paddy fields, khazans, rivers, nallas, ponds, sand dunes, sandy areas, mud flats and no development slopes.
RP21 deleted all the settlement zones marked in these Eco 1 areas, in RP01 and banned any kind of development in these green and virgin areas.
Eco 2 consists of cultivable land, orchard, natural cover, fish farms, salt pans, irrigation command areas, archaeological parks as well as heritage parks/trail/buffer etc. These also include our Kullagar and farms, consisting of total 26 per cent of Goan land and water bodies.
RP21 has allowed limited development in these areas, necessary to maintain the natural beauty of it.
Both Eco 1 and Eco 2 consist of total 80 per cent of Goa, which just could not be touched for settlement purpose.
The Goa Bachao Abhiyan and other environmentalists had expressed fear that all these areas would be opened up for land coversion if RP21 was denotified and RP01 was brought into force.
