Panaji: The town and country planning (TCP) department issued three notifications under Section 39A of the Town and Country Planning Act which lead to a substantial expansion of land designated as Non Developable Area, and a much smaller set of approvals for conversion to settlement.The four newly approved non-developable parcels are in Seraulim (16.6 lakh sqm), Utorda (9.9 lakh sqm), Calata (3.9 lakh sqm) and Orlim (9.3 lakh sqm), all in Salcete taluka. Interestingly, the 4 lakh sqm that has been designated as NDA is presently classified as paddy fields, orchards, mangroves, fish farms, water bodies, rivers and irrigation-command areas and thus already protected against development.Simultaneously, the TCP has also moved to approve 21 applications for conversion of orchards, natural cover, cultivable land with irrigation command areas, paddy fields, playground to settlement zones. The TCP department said that suggestions from the public regarding the 59,671 sqm were placed before the TCP Board for its recommendation and approvals and the board after “due consideration of the suggestions received” decided to go ahead with the proposals for land conversion.The TCP notification, permits govt to alter and modify the regional plan of Goa but the department has stated that the alteration and modification shall be subject to the outcome of the writ petition pending final disposal before the Bombay high court.Separately, the TCP department has withdrawn the NDA classification for 2 lakh sqm at Sancoale after it was allotted to Goa Shipyard Ltd for infrastructure supporting shipbuilding and ship-repair activities. The resulting net addition of NDA is 37 lakh sqm, provided the rescinded Sancoale parcel is counted as a reversal of an earlier designation rather than as part of the four new approvals.The rescission at Sancoale concerns 2,03,300sqm previously notified as non-developable.
