External forces fuelling propaganda against Goa projects: CM

Panaji, Feb 4 In the wake of the nationwide debate triggered after international pop star Rihanna and young environmental activist Greta Thunberg had tweeted in support of the farmers' agitation, Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Thursday said that for the past several months external forces have been creating unrest in the state.

"Goa has been a victim of propaganda for the past several months, significantly being fuelled by the external forces. Some of the Opposition parties in Goa have also been motivating such external forces to create an unrest in the state," Sawant tweeted.

"No propaganda shall derail our sincere efforts towards building a progressive state," added the Chief Minister.

His remarks come in the wake of several months-long protests against three roads, rail and power projects proposed in the protected forests in and around Mollem village in South Goa.

On Wednesday, former Goa Deputy Chief Minister Vijai Sardesai said that there was need to escalate the protests against the three projects to an international scale to attract global condemnation of a government decision to cut more than 50,000 trees at the sites of the three projects.

Sardesai had also said that the farmers' protests had attracted global attention following the tweets by Rihanna and Thunberg.

( With inputs from IANS )