CHANDOR: The residents of Chandor were elated when Chief Minister Pramod Sawant during his budget speech in March had declared that their village would be developed as Heritage Village, but they are quite disappointed now that not a single step has been taken to convert the declaration into a reality.
He announced that at the next Assembly session a consultant would be appointed to prepare a plan to develop the heritage village and that too has remained as a mere announcement.
The villagers on the other hand, have been looking eagerly to see their heritage preserved and protected given the fact that it was the capital of the region from 6th to 11th century when Chandrapur as it was called then, was the capital of the Bhoja and Kadamba dynasties upto the year 1054.
The Village Development Committee even organised a seminar on October 21 where villagers and experts gave their suggestions while also identifying places of historical importance as well as cultural significance which could be highlighted and protected as part of heritage protection.
Local MLA and Leader of Opposition Yuri Alemao not only attended the nearly three-hour long seminar but also appreciated the various suggestions and assured that he would ensure that the consultant would visit the village before submitting the report.
“During my travels across the world, I observe that visitors like to gather at a central place to know the place and therefore I propose to develop the area in front of the village church as a heritage square,” he said.
It would be relevant to point out that diagonally in front of the Chandor church is the famous Menezes Braganza house where father of Goa’s liberation movement, Dr Tristao Braganza Cunha was born besides also being the birthplace of Goa’s first women freedom fighters Bertha and Beatrice Braganza.
Chandor sarpanch Estefanio Dias asserted the need to protect and promote the village heritage as that is what gives the village and its residents not only their identity but also pride.
One VDC member, besides being active in social activities, lamented that the MLA is overburdened with the responsibilities of being the Leader of Opposition. “He is so busy visiting other constituencies that he does not get time to attend to his own constituency,” he said while pointing out that being a village represented by the Opposition, the government may not do much to develop Chandor.
Another villager, on the condition of anonymity, opined that nothing will happen now. “Work on developing heritage in the village will start only when the next Assembly elections are close,” he said.
Chandor VDC convener J D’Silva revealed that the panchayat has taken some initiative and included some of the proposals made at the seminar in their Gram Panchayat Development Plan for the ensuing year.
“The panchayat has agreed to re-paint the bus stop sheds in the village depicting historical or cultural facets of the village under the No Cost or Low Cost bracket of GPDP,” he said adding that Dr Prajal Sakhardande’s suggestion to erect signboards showing places of historical importance has also been accepted by the panchayat.
“The government would do well to stop the heavy vehicles from plying in our village to prove that it is serious about preserving and protecting our heritage,” said D’Silva summarising the people’s expectations.