Goa’s lateritic plateaus spring to life with colours, fragrance, and beauty in the monsoon season. These are not wastelands, as often labelled by those seeking to develop them for their selfish interest.
Plateaus are biodiversity hotspots, unique ecological wonders home to endemic flora and fauna, and heritage landscapes deeply embedded in Goa’s cultural and ecological identity.
Yet today, one such plateau, the Bhagwati Plateau in Loliem-Polem in Canacona, stands threatened. The announcement of Goa’s first-ever Film City on this ecologically sensitive land has sparked not only concern, but renewed resistance from nature lovers, environmentalists, scientists and local residents alike.
And it should worry all Goans because if Bhagwati falls to concrete one by one, our plateaus will vanish, and the loss will be irreversible.
The announcement of Goa’s first-ever Film City on this ecologically sensitive land has sparked not only concern, but renewed resistance from nature lovers, environmentalists, scientists and local residents alike.
ECOLOGICAL TIMEBOMB
The Bhagwati Plateau, lying at the edge of the Western Ghats, a biodiversity hotspot, supports a rare, nutrient-deficient habitat that mysteriously nurtures the most nutrient-defying species.
Botanists like Prof M K Janarthanam have long documented that Goa’s plateaus host more endemic species than our forests. These are hardy, fragile plants like Glyphochloa, a genus of grasses found only in this terrain, and Ceropegia, a climber with extraordinary adaptations.
One rare species, Dipcadi goensis, has been found in just three locations in the entire state: Khola, Rivona, and Bhagwati itself. If we lose Bhagwati, we may lose this plant entirely.
Plateaus also host seasonal beauties. As explained by botanists, during monsoons these lands transform into a colourful canvas of purple, white, and yellow blooms. This isn’t just beauty, it’s ecological rhythm. These plants support pollinators like bees and butterflies precisely when forest trees aren’t flowering. Destroy this link in the seasonal chain, and the repercussions ripple far beyond the plateau's edge.
One rare species, Dipcadi goensis, has been found in just three locations in the entire state: Khola, Rivona, and Bhagwati itself. If we lose Bhagwati, we may lose this plant entirely.
LIVING SPONGES OF WATER AND LIFE
Scientifically, Goa’s lateritic plateaus function like gigantic sponges. Their porous structure soaks in monsoon water and recharges the groundwater table that sustains agriculture and drinking water in adjacent low-lying villages.
Seal this surface with concrete, and it's like wrapping a sponge in plastic. Water will run off, droughts will intensify, fields will go dry, and wells will stop replenishing.
According to ecologists and zoologists who have worked in the area, the Bhagwati Plateau feeds life downstream, not just with water, but it's also a second home for visiting wildlife. Bordering the Cotigao Wildlife Sanctuary, it acts as a buffer zone and secondary habitat for Indian bisons, wild boars, and leopards.
Leopard scat has been found regularly here, and locals confirm sightings on CCTV and unfortunate encounters with livestock. Remove this wild corridor, and the consequence is not just ecological loss, but would also lead to incidents of man-animal conflict.
According to ecologists and zoologists who have worked in the area, the Bhagwati Plateau feeds life downstream, not just with water, but it's also a second home for visiting wildlife.
CULTURAL DISCONNECTION
These plateaus are where local communities gather medicinal plants, where traditional knowledge thrives, and where many Goans reconnect with the natural world, especially during the rains. Mass flowering events on plateaus have inspired local songs, rituals, and seasonal foraging traditions.
If we replace this living heritage with film sets and roads, what exactly are we developing? Are we so eager to create a manufactured Goan identity on screen that we are willing to bury the very real Goa under the ground?
TODAY BHAGWATI, TOMORROW ANOTHER
It must be said plainly that the film city is only the beginning. If we allow constructions on the Bhagwati Plateau, it will set a precedent that no other plateau can be safe from. From Socorro to Verna, from Taleigao to Sanguem, every elevated plateau will be lost to development. And no biodiversity assessment, no local objection, no cultural argument will stop it once this template is made official.
That’s why this isn’t just the issue of Loliem or Canacona, this is an all-Goa concern.
From Socorro to Verna, from Taleigao to Sanguem, every elevated plateau will be lost to development.
A PLEA
It’s tempting to see a plateau as just a stretch of flat land. It’s not, it's a delicately balanced ecosystem, a biodiversity bank, a seasonal water tank, and a home to life that can’t survive elsewhere.
It is imperative that the Goa government and the Loliem-Polem Comunidade reconsider this model of economic development.
It is every Goan's bounden duty to raise their voice by joining the protests, demand clarity from the political leadership, write to the Chief Minister’s Office, and most importantly, talk about this with everyone.
Awareness is resistance. And if you stay silent today, it will mean consent to forget forever.