Goa, Oct. 14 -- Chimbel, Goa - The 2021 wetland notification for Toyyar Lake has reignited local resistance against the proposed Rs.100-crore Unity Mall project by the Goa Tourism Department. Villagers argue that the project, planned within the officially protected zone, violates environmental safeguards and threatens the wetland's hydrology, biodiversity, and traditional livelihoods.

Toyyar Lake, notified as a wetland under the Goa State Wetland Authority, has become the epicentre of a growing grassroots movement. Residents say the government's own notification bars construction in the "Zone of Influence" of the lake, yet large-scale land filling and tree felling have already begun. According to a study commissioned by local environment...