Goa govt yet to formally allot land for Defence Expo: Minister

The Centre today said the Goa government is yet to formally allot land to the Defence Ministry for holding the Defence Expo next year in the state.
In a written reply in Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for Defence Rao Inderjit Singh said it has been decided to organise Def Expo 2016 in Quitol, Naqueri Betul in Quepem area of South Goa.
The Government of Goa was requested to make approximately 150 acres of land available for the purpose, he said.
"However, Government of Goa has not allotted any land formally for the purpose to the Ministry of Defence," he said.

The Def Expo has been organised in previous years in Delhi, he said adding that no land was allotted for Def Expo in Delhi.
Def Expo used to be organised in Pragati Maidan, a property of India Trade Promotion Organisation (ITPO), by hiring the space.

Goa government's decision to allot 150 acres of land for holding a defence exposition had yesterday drawn criticism in the Rajya Sabha, with a Congress member objecting to it saying land was required for setting up institutes like IIT and AIIMS.
Raising the issue during Zero Hour, Shantaram Naik (Cong) said, "Goa requires land for establishing AIIMS, IIT, NIT etc and in such circumstances, there is no sense in giving land to Defence Exposition."

He claimed that apart from 150 acres of land in Naqueri village in Goa, the balance surrounding 100 acres was also likely to be utilised indirectly by the Defence Ministry and expressed concern over the issue.