The Old Cross Fishing Canoe Owners’ Cooperative Society (OCFCOCS) has threatened to launch an agitation and to approach the courts if the ambitious plan to develop Vasco bay was put into action. The government had recently unveiled plans to develop the bay by bifurcating it. One part would be given to Mormugao Port Trust (MPT) while the other would be used for development of various facilities, including a new jetty for the Vasco fishing community. Addressing a Press conference at Khariwado in Vasco, OCFCOCS President Custodio D’Souza claimed that the State government, MPT and Vasco MLA Carlos Almeida failed to take fishermen into confidence before unveiling the plans to develop the bay. MPT has been dreaming to grab whole of Khariwado bay with its ambitious development of Vasco bay plan. In reality, MPT wants to development new berths (berth 12 and 13) after destroying Khariwado beach. We have already lost major portion of our beach due to erosion and hence canoes owners from Khariwado as well as the members of Baina Ramponkar and Fishing Canoe Owners’ Society will not allow any further destruction of Khariwado beach, he said. He further said that before 2017 assembly polls, a grand function was held to lay foundation stone for the project (development of Vasco bay). Even I was called for the meeting by giving false information as they wanted me to sign the MoU. They never showed me any proposed plan for project nor gave me any information and they wanted me to sign the MoU which is unjust and hence I refused to sign the same. I feel that it is the mistake of Vasco MLA as he failed to take us into confidence before unveiling his plans for Vasco bay. Now we have decided that if MPT or State government tries to move forward with the project, then, we will approach court to seek justice and to stall the project, he said. When asked whether the opposition by the canoe owners would not lead to any division between fishermen community, especially between canoe owners and trawler owners who are supporting the plan, D’Souza said, I don’t want to comment anything about other fishermen community or boat owners. We only know that we all 90 canoe owners are traditional fishermen operating from Khariwado since ages and we know the real importance of Khariwado beach for canoe owners and if this beach is taken over by MPT then we will left with no option for our livelihood as under present situation we are unable to park our canoes on the beach as the area available is insufficient for our members and day by day our canoes are getting damaged.