Campal Grounds Must Remain in Public Hands: CCP Councillor Jack Sukhija

Goa Khabar: Mr. Jack Sukhija, Councillor of the Corporation of the City of Panaji (CCP), has strongly opposed any move to hand over the management or control of the newly renovated Campal Grounds to private parties.

Mr. Sukhija said, “The Campal Grounds were renovated with the hard earned money of Goa’s taxpayers. Every citizen has contributed towards this project, and therefore every citizen has an equal right to enjoy it. It is simply unacceptable that a public ground, built and improved using public funds, should be placed in the hands of private entities. Public spaces belong to the people not to private businesses.”

He further stated that the Campal Grounds should remain a place where children can play, senior citizens can walk, families can spend quality time together and young athletes can pursue their sporting dreams without unnecessary restrictions or commercialisation.

Instead of privatising the facility, Mr. Sukhija has proposed that the Campal Grounds be entrusted to the Sports Authority of Goa (SAG) for its overall management and upkeep, while the football ground may be managed by the Goa Football Association to ensure professional maintenance and continued promotion of football in Goa.

He further suggested that the walking track and children’s play area should remain open to the public during designated hours. A nominal user fee may be collected by SAG solely to meet the cost of maintenance and upkeep, ensuring that the facilities remain clean, safe and well maintained while continuing to remain affordable and accessible to everyone.

Drawing a parallel with the Panaji Ferry parking area, Mr. Sukhija pointed out that taxpayers’ money was spent to renovate and strengthen the public parking lot, only for it to be handed over to a private casino operator shortly thereafter. He said this pattern of using public funds to create valuable infrastructure before transferring its benefits to private operators raises serious concerns about whose interests are truly being served.

“People are tired of seeing public money being used to create assets that slowly slip out of the hands of the public. Every rupee spent comes from the pockets of hardworking Goans. The Government must remember that it is only the custodian of these public assets and not their owner. This vulture like approach of taking what belongs to the people and placing it in private hands must stop. Campal Grounds should remain exactly what it was meant to be, a public space for the people, by the people and for future generations of Goans,” Mr. Sukhija said.