The high court of Bombay at Goa has come down heavily on Mormugao Planning and Development Authority (MPDA) and a close acquaintance of panchayat minister Mauvin Godinho for violating rules framed by the Navy for constructions around Goa international airport.
MPDA had rejected the Navy’s rules to regulate construction within a 4km radius around the airport, which also serves as an airbase for the fighter jets and maritime reconnaissance aircraft.
In an interim order, the high court has said the MPDA has no authority to reject the colour-coded zoning map by the Navy to regulate construction around the airport.
A division bench of justices M S Sonak and M S Jawalkar also said that it was disturbing that one of the petitioners, Chicalim deputy sarpanch Kamla Prasad Yadav, has “prima facie” carried out construction in “defiance of 2015 rules”.
Yadav is a close aide of Dabolim MLA Godinha and both are members of MPDA, which granted permission to builders including Yadav’s Venture Building Dreams to construct highrises within the flight path of an aircraft.
Yadav’s real estate project has over 100 flats in two buildings.
On November 18, MPDA passed a resolution rejecting the Navy’s building rules. The body also decided that construction permissions will continue to be granted based on the funnel area shown in Vasco’s outline development plan.
“What is disturbing is that such a resolution was passed during the pendency of these petitions,” the bench observed.
The high court also said the colour-coded map of the Navy will prevail over the Vasco ODP and MPDA cannot ignore it by passing a resolution.
“This is a matter of aviation safety and due deference is necessary to be shown to not only the 2015 rules, but also the CCZM prepared,” the high court said.
Godinho had told TOI that the Navy was using the security of aircraft as an excuse to restrict construction activity in the vicinity of the airport. “Just because some homes are in the landing zone, you cannot destroy the buildings,” he had said.
The state government has also rejected the Navy rules and chief minister Pramod Sawant has written to the defence ministry asking for the norms to be relaxed for Goa.
“The MPDA will have no authority to pass the aforesaid resolution, as the passing of the resolution virtually amounts to the MPDA acting in defiance with the ministry of civil aviation (height restrictions for safeguarding of aircraft operations) rules, 2015, or the colour coded zoning map (CCZM) prepared thereunder,” the high court said.
The high court passed the order on a public interest litigation filed by Alexander Michael and others against MPDA and the state government for allowing several high-rise buildings to come up in the close vicinity of Goa’s lone airport.
MPDA, through its counsel, A D Bhobe said the planning body would abide by the Navy rules and not grant development permissions on the basis of the ODP.
