The Town and Country Planning (TCP) department of Goa has proposed classifying more than 4.4 lakh square metres of land in Tiswadi taluka as a non-developable zone (NDZ) under fresh Section 39A notifications. This move targets ecologically and historically sensitive areas in Old Goa and Santa Cruz.
The notification, approved by the TCP board on May 4, proposes converting large tracts currently classified as orchard land, khazan land, paddy fields, saltpans, mangroves, and water bodies into NDZ. Of the total proposed area, approximately 3.4 lakh sqm pertains to Santa Cruz village, while just over 1 lakh sqm is located at Ella in Old Goa.
The Santa Cruz proposal covers an extensive cluster of survey holdings comprising khazan lands, mangroves, saltpans, paddy fields, orchards, and water bodies. The TCP board has recommended that the entire 3,37,058 sqm area be designated as non-developable, while retaining existing settlement portions.
Several environmentally sensitive land categories have been included in the proposal, including mangroves in survey numbers 546/1 and 546/2, water bodies in survey numbers 550/1 to 14, and khazan lands spread across multiple survey holdings. Portions of saltpans and paddy fields have also been proposed for protection under the no-development classification.
The second proposal pertains to Old Goa's Ella village, where 1,02,500 sqm of land has been recommended as non-developable. This land presently comprises orchards, settlement pockets, protected archaeological sites, and institutional zone markings. Several plots currently classified as orchard land have been proposed for inclusion within the no-development category.
The latest notification, issued by TCP Chief Town Planner Vertika Dagur, marks a continuation of the TCP department's recent exercise of identifying ecologically fragile and environmentally sensitive lands for non-developable classification under Section 39A of the TCP Act.
Unlike earlier notifications issued in recent weeks, which largely focused on converting natural cover, orchard land, and irrigation command areas into settlement zones, the present notification proposes restrictions on future development in areas containing mangroves, khazan land, saltpans, water bodies, and archaeological buffers.
The TCP department has kept a 30-day window for suggestions and inputs from stakeholders. This period allows the public and other interested parties to provide feedback on the proposed classification before it is finalised.
