GOA FORWARD PARTY CONSTITUTES CELL TO FORMULATE PLAN FOR PRESERVATION AND PROTECTION OF OLD GOA
PANAJI: Goa Forward Party vice president Dr Renuka da Silva has been appointed as convenor of a cell constituted by the party to formulate a plan for the preservation and protection of Old Goa.
Dr Renuka da Silva is a Dentist by profession and former chairperson of South Goa Planning and Development Authority (SGPDA).
Goa Forward Party supremo and MLA Vijai Sardesai said that the group will also act as a pressure group to convince the government of the day to declare this site as a Heritage Zone. He has requested all Goemkars, especially those who have the subject expertise to help Dr Renuka da Silva to form this group and achieve the objective.
Stating that the Party will not rest till Old Goa is declared a Heritage Zone, Vijai said that the party will invite experts including archaeologists, architects, engineers, conservationists and urban planners to join the cell that will formulate a plan for the preservation and protection of Old Goa.
The Government’s decision to scrap the proposal to include Old Goa in Greater Panaji Planning and Development Authority (GPPDA) is a victory for Goem and Goemkarponn. But we cannot relax. We have to remain vigilant because this Government cannot be trusted, said Vijai.
“Our party will see to it that all those viewing this heritage site as prime real estate will not be allowed to find and exploit any loopholes that could be deliberately left by this Government and its agents,” he said.
Vijai said he had already written to UNESCO and ICOMOS to take all steps to preserve the future of Old Goa. He had also written to the Union Minister for Culture that Old Goa should be declared a Heritage Zone so that it can be protected for all posterity. This is not my view but the opinion of many archaeological, engineering and conservation experts who have voiced their concerns about losing this heritage site forever and who have also offered viable solutions and strategies to protect and preserve it, he said.