Goa HC Strikes Down Section of Planning Act, Calls It Favorable to Private Interests

The Goa High Court struck down Section 17 of the Town and Country Planning Act, 1974, ruling that it benefited private landowners over public welfare. The section allowed zoning changes, leading to mass land conversions. The verdict upholds the Regional Plan, preventing arbitrary land-use modifications for commercial gains.

The Goa Bench of the Bombay High Court has struck down Section 17 of the Goa Town and Country Planning Act, 1974, ruling that it prioritized private landowners' interests over public welfare. The section, which allowed zoning changes within existing zones, was deemed to undermine the Regional Plan—a long-term blueprint guiding land use and environmental conservation in the state.

The ruling came in response to a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by three citizen organizations: Goa Foundation, Khazan Society of Goa, and Goa Bachao Abhiyan. The petitioners argued that Section 17 was being misused to convert vast areas of land—primarily paddy fields, natural cover, orchards, and no-development zones—into settlement zones for commercial gains.

Between March 2023 and January 2025, the state government granted 353 approvals under the section, impacting approximately 26.5 lakh square meters of land. The court observed that these changes were made without a fixed limit and were effectively altering the carefully prepared Regional Plan.

A division bench of Justices Nivedita P. Mehta and M.S. Karnik ruled that such alterations did not serve sustainable development but rather catered to private interests. The court held that "plot-by-plot conversion" under Section 17 amounted to mutilating the Regional Plan, which had been established after an elaborate process.

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With this ruling, the government has lost the power to grant land use changes at the request of private parties, a move seen as a victory for environmental and civic groups aiming to preserve Goa’s natural and agricultural landscape.