How much is the total area of land proposed for conversion to settlement under the controversial Section 39A of the Town & Country Planning Act? It is approximately 78 lakh square metres across Goa!
According to the latest data, the government has received applications to convert land use to settlement zones covering over 68 lakh square metres—precisely 68,62,311 square metres.
Additionally, zoning has already been changed for approximately 10 lakh square metres of land, with the exact figure being 9,29,184 square metres.
This information was provided by Town and Country Planning Minister Vishwajit Rane to St. Andre MLA Viresh Borkar during the Assembly session on 15 January 2026.
All 12 talukas are involved, with a total of 1,220 applications received.
The land in question includes categories such as agriculture, paddy fields (including those under irrigation command areas), cultivable land, orchards, natural cover, private forests, no-development slopes, water bodies, and even industrial zones.
The TCP department has already approved zone changes for settlement in 150 cases across nine talukas. Currently, Sattari, Quepem, and Dharbandora are the only talukas with no cases of zone change.
In Canacona, there is only one case: Vishant Prabhudesai of Nagarcem-Palolem has converted his land, measuring approximately 4.15 lakh square metres, to a ‘No Development Zone.’ (This is not included in the total land changing to settlement zones.)
TALUKA-WISE APPLICATIONS UNDER 39 A
Out of the total 68.62 lakh square metres of land sought for conversion to settlement, two talukas of Pernem and Bardez cover half of this land. A total of 475 applications have been received from these two talukas to change the zone of 34,98,513 square metres of land.
Pernem alone covers over one-fourth (27%) of the land sought to be converted. A total of 156 applications seek conversion of the land use to settlement of 18,82,624 square metres.
A little less than another one-fourth, meaning 24 per cent of the land is from Bardez, with the highest number of 319 applications, involving land of 16,15,889 square metres.
Applications under 39A (Click this link for better visibility)
Another one-third (31%) is from Mormugao, Tiswadi and Bicholim talukas. The TCP has received 161 applications from these three talukas, locating the port town of Vasco, Goa’s capital city of Panaji, and the mining belt of North Goa. The total area of land sought for conversion under section 39A in these three talukas is 20,93,258 square metres.
Though one of the densely populated talukas of Salcete has received 177 applications, the land sought for settlement covers four lakh square metres. TCP minister’s Sattari taluka has only 25 applications and land of around 3 lakh square metres.
Compared to other talukas, Ponda taluka has received the second-highest number of applications: 235. But the area of land is around 2.16 lakh square metres.
The virus of 39A has also entered the so-called remote talukas of Quepem, Canacona, Sanguem and Dharbandora. The total land change sought in these talukas is around 3.52 lakh square metres with 147 applications.
ZONES CHANGED IN NINE TALUKAS
In addition to these pending applications, the TCP department has already changed the zone to the settlement of nine talukas. And 80 per cent of this land belongs to three talukas: Tiswadi, Pernem, and Bardez.
Topping this list is the Tiswadi taluka, with 11 applicants having their zone changed to a settlement of 2.80 lakh square metres of cultivable land. It’s one-third of the total land where the zone has already been changed.
Zone changed under 39A (Click this link for better visibility)
Then comes Pernem, which secured one-fourth (25%) of the share in getting the zone changed to settlement, with 21 cases cleared involving land of around 2.36 lakh square metres.
Bardez again accounts for one-fourth (24%) of the land share, with 38 cases and 2.26 lakh square metres of land.
Ponda has the largest number of 56 cases where the zone is changed, but, comparatively, the land area is only 2 per cent: 15,637 square metres.
Bicholim, Mormugao, Salcete, Sanguem and Canacona have 24 cases being cleared, involving a total land area of 1.73 lakh square metres, comprising 19 per cent of the total land where zones are changed.
