MONDAY, JULY 08, 2024
Nearly 50 years ago, in 1975, when the then Government of Goa, Daman & Diu took the giant leap to construct Selaulim Dam at Sanguem to provide water for drinking and agriculture primarily, it led to the immediate displacement of 643 families lock, stock and barrel. As two villages of Kurdi and Selaulim would be submerged in the dam reservoir, the villagers had to forego their houses and agricultural lands on which they thrived for generations as they had a very close bond with agriculture.
Each affected family from these villages were promised a rehabilitation package of 400 sq mts land for housing and 10,000 sq mts for agriculture.
Besides, the government also promised a hospital at Colony No. 1 in Wadem, the village where the displaced villagers would be housed, which however failed to see the light of the day even today, despite having built a spacious building to house the hospital. Ironically, due to neglect, not only has this building become dilapidated, but is now a den for nefarious activities.
As their land was being used to benefit the whole State, the villagers willingly scarified all they owned, with high hopes that the government would fulfil its promises. But as they have lived in hope and seen many die in despair, the affected villagers are now seething with anger.
As per the Sanad issued by then Collector, the rehabilitated families were to attain Class I status to their new lands after 20 years. This meant they would be able to dispose or raise loans against security of these lands as rightful owners.
However, as on date only one-third or rather 216 families to be precise, have attained Class I status while the others
continue to languish as Class II occupants of the land whose rightful owner is the
government
The displaced families’ woes do not end there, as there are 71 families, originally hailing from the now submerged Kurdi and Selaulim villages, who are yet to get any benefit of the rehabilitation scheme and they have been classified “Missing Families” by the Water Resources Department (WRD).
When the Congress was in power, the Selaulim Rehabilitation Committee would meet the evacuees regularly and listen to their grievances. However, following the change of guard, those meetings have stopped and the evacuees are now feeling totally orphaned.
“As there is nobody listening to us, our problem languishes as it is,” said Santosh Gaonkar who belongs to one of the 71 Missing Families. Gaonkar, whose ancestors hailed from Kurdi, is presently residing at Dapodem ward of Bhati Village and runs from pillar to post to get the housing and agricultural land promised to his family.
In August 2020, Jennifer Monserrate, the then Revenue Minister, promised to resolve their issue within 45 days bringing giving much hope and bringing joy to the despairing families. However, their hopes were dashed to smithereens.
One of the disappointed evacuees Manoj Paryekar termed Jennifer’s exercise as nothing but a tamasha adding that if the government willed, their problem would have been resolved decades ago. “Unfortunately we, the evacuees are being used only for votes,” he lamented while stating that the task for the authorities is clear – identify alternate land and allot it to the evacuees.
After Jennifer’s road show at Wadem, Revenue Department surveyors in September 2020 identified encroachments on government lands and submitted its report to the Water Resources Department and Deputy Collector Sanguem.
The then Sanguem Deputy Collector Ajay Gaude held two camps Wadem and Valkini and presented a report to at least grant Class I status to the alternate lands given to evacuees to the Collector, South. Both these reports are gathering dust
at the Collector’s office.
“Double Benefit” enjoyed with impunity by people close to the ruling dispensation, is the new problem faced by the displaced people who are yet to be compensated for their loss.
On the other hand, people who were paid cash compensation but whose land is not submerged are also unhappy. Uday Deikar, one of the evacuees who had opted for cash compensation but whose plot is not submerged says “As our plot has not submerged, the government should give it back to us and we are willing to return the cash compensation received.” The present Water Resources Minister Subhash Shirodkar while addressing a function at Sanguem on last year’s Independence Day announced that by this year’s Independence Day the Selaulim evacuees’ problem would be resolved.
August is just seven months away and the evacuees are eagerly waiting to see whether they will get a pre-mature baby as only two demands will be granted or will it be yet another still birth as nothing will be done!
Jennifer Monserrate’s unfulfilled promise
The distressed farmers who suffered for 45 years after having willingly sacrificed everything for the benefit of the State, were truly hopeful in 2020 when the then Revenue Minister and present MLA in the ruling party, Jennifer Monserrate visited Kurdi-Wadem village and promised to resolve their issues within 45 days.
The evacuees hailed her for visiting their ramshackle surroundings despite being a woman. She was accompanied by then MLA Prasad Gaonkar and government officials.
Jennifer Monserrate had three clear tasks placed before her:
1.
Accord Class I status to all families who were allotted their housing and agricultural lands2.
Identify vacant land that could be allotted to the 71 Missing Families3.
Issue Sanads to around 81 families allotted agricultural plots at Zanodem and Bhati but have not been given the ownership titlesThe then Sanguem Deputy Collector Ajay Gaude tried his level best to at least complete the first task of providing Class I ownership status to the families and allotted their housing and agricultural plots. Unfortunately, his recommendations are gathering dust in the office of the Collector for the last three years.
Jennifer Monserrate’s much hailed visit to the underdeveloped village has remained nothing but a road show that only gave her photo opportunities to only garner publicity.
BJP supporters reap double benefit?
The alleged “double benefit” to Bharatiya Janata Party supporters has further angered the evacuees who have not yet been rehabilitated.
The Full Reservoir Level (FRL) or height of the dam was 41.15 metres when the Selaulim dam was built. In 1996, Water Resources Department raised the FRL to 45 metres due to the increase in demand for water for both drinking and agriculture.
This increase would result in submerging 170 agricultural plots allotted earlier to rehabilitate the evacuees of 1975. WRD wrote to these likely to be affected families asking them to surrender their plots in lieu of which they were given two options — accept a one-time payment of Rs 4 lakh and opt for alternate agricultural plot at another place.
Given the hardships faced earlier in getting alternate land, 81 families opted for the lump sum payment, while the remaining 89 families chose the second option.
Of these 89 families, 29 were allotted plots at Naiquinim, 30 at Nagvem, 3 at Wadem and 1 at Vakini but none of them have been given Sanads for the land. Significantly, 26 families are yet to be given the alternate land they asked for.
Ironically, as against the WRD estimate, only 40 plots were submerged and the evacuees who were allotted the plots that are not submerged continue to enjoy them even though some have been compensated for their “so called loss”.
The 71 Missing Families demand that the 130 plots that were not submerged as projected, and whose owners have been compensated, be identified and allotted to them. But the government is turning a deaf ear to this demand because the people, who continue to occupy these plots despite being compensated, are supporters of the BJP allege some locals.
Will it be a premature delivery or another still born?
Following the ‘no show 45-day’ promise of 2020, the present Water Resources Department (WRD) Minister Subhash Shirodkar at last year’s Independence Day programme in Sanguem promised that the evacuees issue will be solved within a year and they could expect the good news on August 15, 2024.
Sources disclosed that WRD and Revenue Department are working hard to fulfil two of the three tasks enlisted in 2020 and allotting Class I status to all the rehabilitated land owners is given top priority. In fact all the formalities are completed and the report is awaiting only the Minister’s accent, which is expected by next week.
The second task sought to be achieved is rehabilitating the 71 Missing Families who are hanging in a state of limbo for the last nearly 50 years, which is akin to one generation.
The question plaguing the affected farmers is whether this time too they will be disappointed or will atleast two of their demands be met?
