Two Xeldem residents protest unauthorised development in village

Margao: Two Xeldem residents have launched a protest outside the village panchayat, highlighting growing concerns over unauthorised development activities in the village.

Social activist Prashant Dessai and former panchayat member Amey Chimulkar began their protest on Wednesday, demanding immediate action on various illegal activities, including unauthorised hill cutting and land conversions, which were previously raised during gram sabha meetings.

The protest follows a recent gram sabha where villagers strongly opposed illegal development activities at two locations— unauthorised plot development on over 1 lakh sqm of land without necessary approvals from the panchayat or the TCP department, and illegal hill cutting for developing a large number of residential plots.

Of particular concern for the protestors is the fate of the defunct Atlantic Spinning and Weaving Mills property. Villagers have passed a resolution in the gram sabha opposing any residential complex development on this land, fearing demographic changes and loss of the village’s rural character. They advocate maintaining the area’s industrial status and establishing non-polluting industries to generate employment for local youth.

“Despite repeatedly raising these issues in gram sabhas, no concrete action was taken,” said Dessai. He also pointed to the tardy pace of the construction of govt handloom training centre at Xeldem, work on which was initiated in 2017. He demanded that the project be completed at the earliest so that it generates employment for local youth.

The protestors have demanded that a public hearing or a special gram sabha be convened to discuss the issues. They have warned of intensifying the agitation if the authorities fail to heed their demand.