TEAM HERALD
OLD GOA: Accusing panchayat authorities of a total failure in dealing with the garbage menace in the village, residents of Merces demanded that the panchayat should enforce a blanket ban on multi-dwelling projects in the village till a proper garbage management mechanism is in place.
At the Gram Sabha on Sunday, the villagers blamed the panchayat for blindly issuing licences to mega projects without ensuring compliance of sewage and waste disposal facilities by the builders.
Though Merces Sarpanch Walter D’Sousa tried to explain the measures taken by the panchayat in finding a solution for garbage menace, the villagers opined that since the efforts of the panchayat has yielded no results it would be in the best interest of the village to stop issuing licences for more multi-dwelling projects as it would only worsen the garbage menace.
Earlier, locals from Kumbarvaddy took the secretary Bheldas Karapurkar to task over the strong words used in the resolution passed in the last Gram Sabha, wherein the villagers had resolved that the panchayat revoke the licence issued to a builder to develop a mundkarial land in the locality.
Objecting to the statement recorded in the minutes that villagers had threatened panchayat authorities with dire consequences if the licence to the builder was not revoked, the villagers insisted that they had never used threatening language and suspected that panchayat authorities had deliberately used the words ‘dire consequences’ to the advantage to the builder.
“The builder has now used this resolution to file a legal case against the mundkars by stating that the panchayat was threatened to withdraw the licence,” the villagers informed and later advised the panchayat authorities to alter the resolution, which they duly agreed.
The issue of illegal constructions near the Merces-Santa Cruz highway junction, even when the concerned party was served with demolition notices by the panchayat, generated much heat at the gram sabha with villagers questioning how the person could go ahead with the construction when the matter is sub-judice.
When the secretary Karapurkar tried to justify that the party has obtained stay from the deputy collector, the villagers said that obtaining stay does not allow the person to go ahead with the illegal construction.
“It is the duty of the panchayat to bring to the notice of the deputy collector that the person has gone ahead with the construction,” said a villager, while others condemned the panchayat authorities for its failure in dealing with the issue.
The villagers further came down heavily on the secretary Karapurkar for not guiding the panchayat authorities in such matters, due to which illegal activities have mushroomed in Merces.
However, Karapurkar shot back by stating that if the villagers feel that he is not doing his duty then they are free to complain against him to the higher authorities. “I did not ask for a posting in Merces,” he retorted, when the villagers told him that he should vacate the secretary’s post.
