After his ouster from the Goa Cricket Association (GCA) Aldona legislator Dayanand Narvekar is set to face more trouble as the IT Department on Friday filed a complaint with the Anti Corruption Bureau of the Vigilance Department about irregularities at Sucorro IT park. The complaint was filed after the department got consent from Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar. The irregularities, involve expenditure incurred on the process of setting up of the IT park at Socorro. The project was initiated in 2006 when Narvekar was IT minister.
An expenditure of Rs 11. 74 crore (including Rs 86.42 lakh compensation for land) was incurred on Socorro IT in Salvador do Mundo ( see box). It clearly indicates that the expenditure was incurred on setting up facilities not connected to the park. The current government has already decided in principle to drop the project. “The state government has taken serious note of irregularities with respect to expenditure incurred by M/s Infotech Corporation and decided to conduct criminal investigation in the matter,” Srinet N Kothwale, director of Information Technology informed.Land acquisition proposal for Socorro IT park was the approved by then council of ministers and it was envisaged to develop an area around 250 acres which was aimed at attracting medium scale and large scale IT companies with estimated employment for about 8000 people.
However, the project ran into trouble when Goa Foundation went to High Court praying for quashing of the decision relating to the development of the park on the ground that part of the land acquired for the project was forest land. The High Court in an interim order directed that no development activities should be carried out in the area identified as “forest” without permission from appropriate authority under the Forest Conservation Act. The petition is now pending for final disposal.
Courtesy: Herald
