Title ‘error’ forces govt to restart land search for IIT Goa campus

PANAJI: State govt’s ambitious plan to set up the campus for the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Goa at Rivona, in Sanguem, has hit a roadblock due to issues pertaining to the title of the land. This has forced govt to once again begin the hunt to identify new land to establish the campus for the institution.
“There is an issue with the title pertaining to the Rivona land to set up a permanent campus for IIT Goa.We have started the process to identify new land to set up a permanent campus for IIT Goa,” CM Pramod Sawant told TOI.

Almost a year ago, the South Goa district collector issued a public notice for the ac quisition of nearly 10.5 lakh sqm at Rivona for the IIT Goa campus. In Jan this year, official approval for the land came from the Union education ministry.
Before that, the land selected for the IIT campus in Sanguem was rejected by the Union ministry as being unsuitable for the project. There were also protests from farmers who claimed that they were cultivating in the area.
IIT Goa became operational in the state in 2016 and has been functioning from a temporary campus at the Goa Engineering College premises at Farmagudi.
Few identified land parcels dropped after protests
Several land parcels identified for the permanent campus project over the years have either been rejected by the Union education ministry’s site selection committee or faced protests from locals due to several reasons.
The Union education ministry’s requirements state that 12 lakh sqm is necessary to set up an IIT, but former CM Manohar Parrikar told the Centre that given Goa’s land constraints, 6 lakh sqm would be provided for the campus.
Earlier, Goa govt identified land in Canacona taluka for the IIT campus, but due to opposition, it was shifted.
When the project was proposed in Melauli, Sattari, locals organised a sustained protest against it. In Jan 2021, there were clashes between protesters and police personnel at the site. Soon after, Sawant, citing “people’s sentiments,” announced that govt would scrap the project and move it elsewhere.