Clerk held in Serula comunidade land fraud case (ToI)

TNN | Jul 27, 2014, 04.03 AM ISTPANAJI: Yet another arrest was made in the Serula comunidade land fraud case on Saturday. Fifty-four-year old Mohan Narvekar, employed as a clerk at the comunidade, was arrested by the Mapusa police. Narvekar is a resident of Naroa.

Last week, six persons were arrested by the CID for their alleged involvement in fraud, where they unlawfully took over plots from the Serula comunidade.

They were granted conditional bail the following day. Serula communidade comprises the villages of Socorro, Salvador do Mundo, Penha da Franca and the Ecoxim part of Pomburpa.
 http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/Clerk-held-in-Serula-comunidade-land-fraud-case/articleshow/39079116.cms

Ex Serula comunidade attorney held (ToI)

TNN | Jul 24, 2014, 02.18 AM ISTPANAJI: The crime branch on Wednesday arrested former attorney of Serula comunidade Peter Martins in connection with illegal allotment of comunidade plots.

He is the first member of the managing committee, past or present, to be booked by police in the present land allotment scam whose magnitude is yet to be ascertained. Six plot allottees were arrested last week and released.

While Martins, a panchayat secretary, was arrested, several officials of the comunidade administration were questioned. The statement was also recorded of former administrator of the comunidade, N M Gad. The arrest left tongues wagging even in the ruling party as Martins was close to a minister's brother from Bardez who has interests in comunidade land.

Another former attorney who has been virtually ruling the comunidade for many years, has moved for anticipatory bail. It is suspected that besides several ex-officials of the comunidade, some government officials, mainly from revenue and police, are involved in the scam.http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/Ex-Serula-comunidade-attorney-held/articleshow/38941730.cms 

'Misguided' by lawyers, say illegal room owners (ToI)

'Misguided' by lawyers, say illegal room owners

TNN | Jul 5, 2014, 10.50 AM IST
PANAJI: Slum dwellers including migrants who built one-room tenements on private forest land in Maina, Socorro, blamed their lawyers on Friday for misguiding them and allowing them to think that they could get away with it.

With the Socorro panchayat dragging its feet in taking action against the illegal structures on private forest land, tension remained at a high on Friday after locals confronted the persons who had built the one-room ?pucca' houses. Locals also asked Porvorim MLA Rohan Khaunte to send a police team to the site as they feared a law-and-order situation could break out.

Porvorim police rushed to the site and upon questioning the violators, they admitted that they had built their structures without any government or panchayat permissions and were misled by their advocates that they could build on private forest land after buying the land.

"We bought this land. Our advocates said we would have no problem building our rooms here. We want our money back," one of the slum dwellers told the police. Police asked the slum dwellers if they had documents or permissions for building the structures, which they failed to produce. A man standing nearby and watching the scene told TOI that he was speaking in favour of the slum dwellers. He declined to identify himself and claimed that the issue pertaining to private forests was being heard in court and till then, structures could be erected on the land.

Following TOI's report on Thursday, government departments including forest officials visited the site at Maina, Socorro. Deputy conservator of forests Milind Karkhanis said that survey no 291, where the slums had been erected, was a private forest area.

While government departments concerned have visited the site, locals said they were still awaiting action by the Socorro panchayat to demolish the illegal structures.
imesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/Misguided-by-lawyers-say-illegal-room-owners/articleshow/37823760.cms

Forest department: Socorro panchayat must act against illegal slum (ToI)

Forest department: Socorro panchayat must act against illegal slum

TNN | Jul 4, 2014, 10.07AM IST
PANAJI: Government departments acted swiftly and rushed to Maina-Socorro in Bardez on Thursday following a report by TOI that migrants had started erecting a 'pucca' slum in the middle of a private forest.

The forest department also assured locals that it would take action against the culprits for destruction of the trees, but pointed out that it is the job of the Socorro panchayat to demolish the illegal structures erected on the land.

TOI in its edition dated July 3, 2014, published an article Migrants build slum in midst of Socorro p'rivate forest' highlighting that one-room pucca houses have sprouted in the midst of a private forest under survey no. 291/1 after a few days of frantic construction activity.
After observing TOI's visit to the site on Wednesday, the culprits stepped up the pace of their activity and frantically worked overnight.

While on Wednesday, five structures were still under construction, TOI observed on Thursday morning, that five one-room houses were completed, painted with lime and fitted with doors.

The migrants had also planted coconut saplings and banana saplings outside the houses. They then fitted locks on their doors and fled.

Villagers worried about the rapid urbanization of Socorro at the cost of the fast-disappearing verdant cover raised apprehensions that the development in Maina could spawn a Moti Dongor-like slum in Bardez and petitioned government departments concerned for immediate intervention.

Locals feared that such structures may spread illegally over the private forests on the hill in the future.

On Thursday, deputy conservator of forests Milind Karkhanis visited the site along with RFO Panaji Rajendra Fatarpekar and Babi Naik, round forester, Mapusa.

"Survey no. 291 is a private forest area. The neighbouring properties are also private forests. It is a clear violation under the Goa Preservation of Trees Act for which we will take action against the culprits and under the Forest Conservation Act we will be writing to the central government," said Karkhanis.

He further told the gathered, agitated, locals, "We are not empowered to act on the illegal structures and it is up to the Socorro panchayat to demolish them."

Socorro sarpanch Vaishali Satardekar, deputy sarpanch, panchayat secretary and other officials also visited the site and assured the locals that the illegal structures would be demolished.

The director of panchayats and officials of the town and country planning (TCP) department also visited the site on Thursday.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/Forest-department-Socorro-panchayat-must-act-against-illegal-slum/articleshow/37754642.cms

Migrants build slum in midst of Socorro private forest (ToI)

TNN | Jul 4, 2014, 09.34AM IST

PANAJI: A delay in demarcation of private forests, identified by Sawant and Karapurkar committees, has left the door open to illegal activity and a patch of pristine forest cover in Maina, Socorro, is being clandestinely stripped and developed, sources said.

A few one-room pucca houses have sprouted in the midst of a private forest under survey no 291/1 after a few days of frantic construction activity. Villagers worried about the rapid urbanization of Socorro at the cost of the fast disappearing verdant cover have raised apprehensions that the development in Maina could spawn a Moti Dongor-slum in Bardez.

TOI visited the site on Wednesday and observed that five 'pucca' structures were already under construction. Locals alleged that such structures may spread illegally over the private forests on the hill in future.

"It began with some hill cutting in land under survey no 291/1 identified by the government-appointed committees. This is a strictly private forest area with some cashew, mango and other timber trees," a villager said.

The villagers have objected to the illegal development, as all authorities concerned have not granted any permission for the construction activity.

Villagers have rushed off a letter to forests minister Alina Saldanha; Porvorim MLA Rohan Khaunte, forest department and other authorities to halt the hill cutting, deforestation and illegal building of houses.

"We are not allowed to cut a single tree because this area is a private forest. We want that this activity be stopped immediately so that the area can continue to be a forest area," the letter states.

The villagers have demanded that the authorities find out the persons responsible for allowing the blatant destruction of the verdant hills, which they had protected for centuries.

Forest minister Alina Saldanha, when contacted, assured that her office would act immediately. "I will depute our team of officials to visit the site on Thursday," Saldanha said.

The Sawant and Karapurkar panels in their reports submitted on December 10, 1999 and September 4, 2000 had identified 67 sq km of private forests in Goa out of an estimated cover of 200 sq km. But the work of drawing up the limits of the forests earmarked for protection has not been fully completed.

"The 'ground truthing' and demarcation of private forest areas identified by Sawant and Karapur committees has been done in many areas, but in some areas it will be taken up. Opposition to the process in some areas has also caused a hurdle," a forest official stated.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/Migrants-build-slum-in-midst-of-Socorro-private-forest/articleshow/37752904.cms

Government orders demolition of illegal slum in Socorro

TNN | Jul 8, 2014, 01.31 AM IST
MAPUSA/PANAJI: Bardez deputy collector Sabaji Shetye on Monday ordered the demolition of the illegal slum built in the midst of a private forest in Maina, Socorro. 

"I have called the owners of the structures and ordered the demolition of all the structures. They were illegal since they have not obtained any permission from any competent authorities," Shetye said. 

Sources said that the entire Socorro panchayat including sarpanch, panchayat members and the panchayat secretary were summoned to the deputy collector's office on Monday morning. The deputy collector has given the slum dwellers three days' time for the demolition. 

TOI was the first to report that five one-room 'pucca' houses had sprouted in the midst of a private forest area in Socorro. While it was initially reported that the activity was being carried out in survey no. 291/1, it later came to light that the actual survey no. was 291/4. 

In the land survey records, partition of land and sub-plots were shown in survey no. 291/1, which is also a private forest, while survey no. 291/4 showed nothing. 

While this led to the initial confusion, it also threw light that while the activity in 291/4 was illegal, there are similar plans for 291/1, villagers said. 

Deputy conservator of forests Milind Karkhanis said that survey no. 291 is a private forest area. Villagers claim that the activity was in blatant violation as there was hill cutting and illegal felling of trees.http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/Government-orders-demolition-of-illegal-slum-in-Socorro/articleshow/37977074.cms