Floods, fights and (Sunburn) festival
Why are villages around Mopa getting flooded? Who's to blame in Nilkanth vs Gaurav Bakshi? Why are Rane and Monserrate squabbling? This and more in this week's newletter
Hi folks,
It’s been an eventful week in Goa -- one that began, quite literally, on a stormy note with heavy rainfall, waterlogging and flooding inconveniencing residents and commuters across the state. More than that, five people lost their lives in rain related incidents -- three labourers who were killed when a retaining wall crashed onto their shanty at Cundaim in Ponda and in Mandur when a 52-year old man Alfred Rodrigues and his septuagenarian mother Maria were buried alive after a wall of their already weakened home came crashing down on them.
The deaths represent the highest death toll in a single monsoon Goa has witnessed in more than a decade and we’re only in the middle of July.
Now that the waters have receded somewhat, even though things are far from ‘normal, allow me to highlight three areas of concern that the rains have laid bare.
Flooding around Mopa airport
If you’ve been following images of flooding around the Mopa airport you will have seen the scale of flooding and fast flowing torrents that submerged roads, bridges, fields and homes in all the of the six villages -- Varconda, Nagzor, Uguem, Mopa, Casarvornem, Chandel and Mopa surrounding the Barazan plateau upon which the Mopa airport has been built.
This wasn’t the situation before the thriving plateau was flattened and the Airport with its paved parking, expansive terminal, etc was built. So what has changed between then and now?
The short answer: The airport. (Duh!)
The long answer? Also the airport, but more specifically the manner in which the airport was built ignoring not just local and traditional knowledge of the importance of the plateau for the hydrology of the Pernem taluka but also by ignoring specific conditions stipulated in the environmental clearance for granting the project.
Mopa Airport and its ECs
For those unaware, the Mopa airport has had two rounds of environment impact assessment studies and clearances -- the first granted in 2015 by the MoEF & CC, which was stayed by the Supreme Court and a second “addendum” granted in 2020 by the MoEF that stipulated even more conditions over and above the first. Both the clearances spent substantial paragraphs detailing a list of measures that the project proponent was required to undertake to ensure rainwater harvesting measures.
In its judgement dated January 16, 2020 authored by Justice D Y Chandrachud, who’s now the Chief Justice of India, the Supreme Court mandated that “additional conditions which have been imposed by the EAC (Expert Appraisal Committee) shall, together with the original conditions of the EC dated 28 October 2015 and the directions issued by the NGT be cumulatively observed.”
What this means was that GMR was mandated to follow three sets of conditions when building and operating the airport -- the conditions imposed when granting the original environmental clearance, the conditions imposed by the NGT when disposing a challenge to the original environmental clearance, the conditions of the fresh environmental clearance and he conditions imposed by the Supreme Court — 119 in total. All the 119 conditions have been helpfully collated by the Supreme Court in its order found here. As many as 18 of these conditions deal with how water should be managed during and the construction and operation of the airport.
These include conditions like rain water harvesting shall be provided to recharge the groundwater, soil conservation and stabilisation measures, proper drainage systems, emergency containment in the event of a major spill during monsoon season… runoff from paved structures like aprons… routed through drains to oil separation tanks and sedimentation basins before being discharged into rainwater harvesting structures… etc.
“Rainwater harvesting for roof run-off and surface run-off, as plan submitted should be implemented. Rain water harvesting structures shall conform to CGWA guidelines. Before recharging the surface run off-pre-treatment must be done to remove suspended matter, oil and grease. It should be ensured that sustainable water flow in the various channels of watershed in the plateau is maintained,” are some of the conditions mandated.
However, going by the experience of the villagers not just during the past week, but for the past three years since construction began, these measures have either not been taken, or if taken have been done only in token or symbolic manner that doesn’t really serve the purpose.
GMR’s insincerity in tackling these measures came to light when the NGT, which was reviewing the 2015 Environmental Clearance expressed shock that GMR initially proposed “only two rainwater harvesting pits” which the NGT said was “not adequate” that the project needed “to place other pits at such locations as to capture all the excess drainage for water recharge.” That is clearly not happening as torrents of water come gushing downhill taking with it roads, fields and leaving communities cut off and villages inaccessible.
Things have reached such a point that even the BJP MLA of Pernem constituency Pravin Arlekar is speaking up against GMR suggesting that they load the excess water into planes and fly off with it.
But as pointed out in this edit published on Monday in The Goan Everyday, GMR needs to own up for the mess it has created around the airport and more importantly, the NEERI that has been tasked by the Supreme court to ensure that the conditions in the EC are being followed, needs to be asked why it has failed in its duty.
Flooding at Guirim
If you, like me, travel between Mapusa and Porvorim on a regular basis, you will have definitely experienced or at least witnessed the flooding of the fields around Guirim. While the newly built highway remains by and large above water, it is the secondary roads leading to Bastora, Parra and Mapusa that regularly go under. It has now reached a stage where it is no longer a bug, but has become a feature every monsoon -- exactly as the environmentalists and activists had predicted at the time of building the Highway.
The reason is simple. The highway and the supporting service roads have been built right atop the Mapusa river by constricting it at a crucial point below the Bastora bridge. Local MLA Adv Carlos Alvares Ferreira demanded that the river be desilted to allow for smoother flow of water, but frankly, the damage is already done.
It is a similar story in Benaulim, where despite consistent opposition from the villagers and activists, the authorities have gone ahead and built the western bypass by submerging the wetland. It is, afterall, not the engineers who design this, or the bureaucrats who approve this that will have to suffer the consequences, but the people of Goa and its environment.
Panjim, a city without hope
The third instance is of course the capital city of Panjim’s. The capital city Panjim receiving 360mm of rainfall in a single 24-hour period between Sunday and Monday, the highest so far this season and which -- quite expectedly -- left the city inundated and commuters stranded. Admittedly Panjim’s problems are not easy to solve. A 175 year old city, built on what was once khazan lands on the water’s edge, that is barely able to keep its head above water every rain, quite literally, has very little hope despite a thousand crore worth of infrastructure poured into it.
Evidence for this can be found in the fact that even on a dry sunny day, the roads at the Patto Complex are flooded -- not by rainwater but by tidal influx as water flows up the drains during high tides in the monsoons to a level that is above the road level.
The rains aren’t excessively heavy this year, and we have most certainly seen heavier rains, but if the infrastructure can’t handle this, what should we expect when climate change arrives in full force?
Yes the ‘smart city’ hasn’t completed its job yet but expecting that upon completion the projects will be some panacea of all that’s wrong is a fool’s errand.
Sankalp Amonkar holds Mormugao Port to ransom
Much has happened this week, that Newton’s story in the Times of India telling of how strong arm-twisting tactics of Mormugao MLA Sankalp Amonkar was hold Mormugao Port to ransom, now seems like a really long time ago.
According to the report, companies importing material through the port are seeing their operations hampered by Amonkar who wants his aides to be given contracts for transporting the ore, else the transport will be blocked. It’s no secret what the MLA wants in return for seamless cargo movement. And the opposition, and the states’ industry lost no time in pointing it out.
It was only after the Chairman of the Mormugao Port, N Vinodkumar sought the intervention of Chief Minister Pramod Sawant that the deadlock was broken and cargo began to move.
But that was not all, stung by the criticism and by his portrayal in the media, Amonkar was quick to insist that he was only opposed to the privatisation of the port and was concerned for the livelihood of the existing transporters dependent on the port.
Nilkanth vs Bakshi: Much ado about nothing
This isn’t a story that would have made it to this newsletter considering how insignificant such an encounter would have usually been. Picture this, a car encounters another on a narrow single lane road with no space to pass. Neither decides to yield, leading to arguments between the two drivers. So common and parodied such an encounter is, that even movies have been made about it (one of the advantages of attending IFFI religiously every year is that I can drop such references every now and then).
Nonetheless considering the people involved, the sentiments involved and what’s happening in Goa at large it ceased to be a simple case of two ego laden drivers each insisting that the other should yield, but turned into a microcosm of what’s happening in Goa at the moment. Besides, since it happened in Revora I couldn’t resist offering my two bits. So let me break down what happened for you, after having spent some time studying who arrived where, from which direction, and at what time leading to the confrontation.
Both sides have claimed the other was the one doing the blocking, but if you are interested in knowing what exactly happened a little after 4pm on the narrow lane outside the Revora village panchayat and who’s really at fault then read my detailed breakdown here.
If you’re already familiar, let me dive straight into the crux of the matter.
Trouble first began when it was reported in the media that Halarnkar had his car blocked by a Delhi based real estate agent, who also abused and began filming the minister.
Word soon spread within the constituency that the local MLA and minister was abused by “Delhi real estate agent.”
Insider vs Outsider
It touched a raw nerve in Goa where locals are feeling increasingly disenfranchised by the huge number of high end constructions sprouting up even in interior villages of Goa - a phenomenon that has accelerated to unprecedented levels after the pandemic and especially since the BJP government returned to power in 2022 and Vishwajit Rane was made Town and Country Planning Minister.
Hundreds of Halarnkar’s supporters soon gathered at the Colvale Police Station vowing to avenge the insult to the local MLA and the hands of the man from Delhi. The following day the Chief Minister said that Bakshi would be arrested and sure enough Bakshi was -- not even an attempt was made to pretend that the Police are independent of the political executive.
Would it have turned out any different if Bakshi was not an ‘outsider’. Most likely yes. It wouldn’t degenerate into an “outsider vs Goan” issue with locals seeking to avenge the insult. The incident lit a spark in an already volatile atmosphere, an atmosphere only exacerbated by the land conversions for the benefit of the ultra rich happening all around even as villagers whose families have been living on the land for centuries can’t afford a decent house.
And the pushback from the locals is coming. Perhaps the government of the day will take heed and rein its its ministers who are laying the red carpet for the real “outsiders calling the shots” instead of lynching a scapegoat.
Bakshi has since been released on bail -- but what was an encounter between two cars on a narrow street should never have resulted in his arrest in the first place. I have no hesitation in saying that this was nothing but high handed abuse of power by the staff of Nilkanth Halarnkar.
Sunburn in South Goa
In a statement released to the media on July 12, the organisers of Sunburn announced that this year’s edition Sunburn Goa 2024 is “set to ignite the shores of South Goa between December 28th and 30th, 2024.”
While the press note is shorn of specifics, indications are that the organisers are looking to host the event at the Quitol plateau where the Defence Expo, the India Energy Week and other major events have been held. But irrespective of the organisers plans, the people of south Goa including the activists and politicians have made plans of their own -- plans to ensure that the festival does not come to south Goa. Both the Travel and Tourism Association of Goa and the Goa Chamber of Commerce and Industry have issued carefully worded statements supporting the festival. This is surely one to keep an eye on in the weeks and months to come.
Grab your popcorn as it’s Babush vs Vishwajit Rane
And finally I have a story that will make you grab your popcorn. Minister for Revenue and representative of the state capital Panaji Babush Monserrate earlier this week hit out at Town and Country Planning Minister Vishwajit Rane accusing him of indiscriminate land conversion in the state.
It appears that Monserrate’s grouse was that he isn’t being consulted even as rapid changes are being effected, in his constituency without his knowledge and consent. In his statement to the media, he said that such ‘illegal’ conversions would not be granted permissions from the local municipality.
On a plain reading of the statements issued by the sparring duo, it’s clear this is nothing but battle for control; Control over who gets to decide what development happens where and with whose consent. With Rane behaving as if he’s the whole and soul determinant when it comes to land and zone conversions in the state, it’s but natural that the others are feeling the heat.
Much can be read into the way Rane initially reacted to Monserrate’s outburst saying there will be no ODP for Taleigao -- quite directly admitting that ODPs are goodies to be handed out to the good kids and conversely denied to those who don’t toe the line.
After all his empty threats, however, both struck conciliatory stances with Monserrate telling the media not to aggravate the matter.
You can either believe them or heed the words of veteran Goa journalist Devika Sequeira, which I’m paraphrasing: “It’s more like they have (agreed to) share the spoils.”
Thank you for sticking through this weeks ‘longish’ newsletter. If you like what you are reading, do spread the word and as always see you next Sunday. Comments and Feedback most welcome.
Great 👍
That would be an interesting angle to check out!