HC directs Goa panchayat to stop operations of 175 commercial set-ups along Anjuna beach

Panaji: The High Court of Bombay at Goa has ordered a panchayat to stop operations of 175 commercial establishments, including many restaurants and lodges, along the popular Anjuna beach over lack of permissions from various authorities.

The division bench of Justices Valmiki Menezes and Mahesh Sonak on Tuesday directed the Anjuna-Caisua panchayat to stop the commercial operations of the structures immediately.

“The reason for the stoppage of commercial activities through the above 175 structures is that any permissions or clearances from the Town and Country Planning authorities back none of these structures,” the Judges said.

“None of these structures have any completion or occupancy certificate. None of these structures are cleared from the perspective of fire safety, discharge of sewerage, etc,” the Bench said.

Of these commercial set-ups, the court observed, 45 have some sort of clearance from the Goa Coastal Zone Management Authority (GCZMA).

“Similarly, about 130 of these 175 structures have neither any clearance from GCZMA nor any permissions under section 66 of the Panchayat Raj Act. These permissions are mandatory. Most of these structures do not have any Trade Licences,” the court said.

The court has ruled that no commercial activities can be carried out from such structures if they do not have occupancy certificates and clearances under GCZMA, Panchayat Raj Act, town planning rules and Health Act.

These establishments also cannot run based on No Objection Certificates (NOCs), which have no statutory basis, the court said.

“The panchayats, we must say, are prima facie acting in breach of state and central legislations by issuing such NOCs to unauthorised structures,” said the bench.