Government woos non-resident Goans for infrastructure investment

PANAJI: Goa Government has invited non- resident Goans, including those living abroad, to invest in creation of infrastructure facilities at village-level and help in development of the State.

The Laxmikant Parsekar-led Government today notified a scheme, "Mhozo Gaum-Majem Goem" (My Village, My Goa), asking the people of Goan origin to invest in infrastructure creation in their respective villages. The State Government's NRI Cell is implementing this scheme.

"Goan expatriates gainfully employed in overseas countries and non-resident Goans settled in other parts of India have often expressed their desire to contribute to the development of their native areas where they were born or brought up or have their roots," said the notification signed by NRI Affairs Secretary Amjad Tak.

"Their contribution to the development process would be in any infrastructure project of public interest. It would either help improve the living conditions of the community at large or provide the much-needed facilities which the local civic bodies like municipalities and panchayats, or Government Departments/Government-aided Institutions, as the case may be, are unable to provide due to lack of funds," it said.

To facilitate investment in such projects, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the contributor and NRI Cell will be signed before work begins on them. In the MoU all the terms and conditions with the contributors, the executing agency and the ultimate end user will be clearly stipulated, the notification added.