Panchayat bodies under Mormugao Taluka are all set for the Panchayat polls. Political leaders have taken keen interest in forming their panels with the intention of getting their loyalists elected. Aspirants have even started campaigning for their candidature by giving doles of all round development. However, it is to be seen whether the new Panchayat bodies would actually resolve the crucial issue of garbage and importantly dumping of garbage in the eco sensitive areas which is on rampant in the Taluka.
This issue of garbage has its own importance in all seven panchayats under the Mormugao Taluka, including Cortalim, Quelossim, Sancoale, Chicalim, Velsao-Pale-Issorcim, Cansaulim-Arossim-Cuelim and Chicolna Bogmalo. Every time before the panchayat elections aspirants make tall claims on resolving garbage issue but after getting elected they give more importance to the musical chair game for the chief’s post and the garbage issue takes a corner seat. This garbage issue gets importance only when the ordinary gram sabhas are held, but then no action can be seen on the ground.
It has been revealed that, at present, with the exception of Chicalim Village Panchayat which has small garbage segregation facility behind Murgao industrial estate, other village panchayats do not have proper garbage disposal system. These panchayats have identified a dumping site on paper only to comply with the High Court directives.
Though some of these panchayats have appointed contractors for door-to-door collection, due to lack of proper dumping facilities, the bulk of the collected garbage from these villages is being dumped in eco sensitive zones. Sadly the panchayat body is least bothered to know where the collected garbage is being dumped or how the same is being disposed off by the contractors appointed by them.
Villages such as Cortalim, Sancoale, Chicolna-Bogmalo, Velsao and even Cansaulim have been struggling to get their own proper garbage dumping/disposal site for the last several years. Probably the battle will continue even in future, until the new body, with the help of director of panchayat, takes special initiative to get this issue resolved.
“Approximately over 20 tonnes of garbage collected from these above mentioned villages lands up in the eco sensitive zones and inside the forest cover. For instance garbage collected from Chicolna-Bogmalo Panchayat gets dumped at eco sensitive area of Santerant (forest cover under Chicolna-Bogmalo Panchayat). All mixed garbage waste, including waste from hotels and restaurants, is getting dumped in this forest area and the culprits have converted a cliff facing the Arabian Sea into a dump yard. Few private contractors are still using this area as dumping yard without any fear due to the lack of action by authorities for reasons best known to them,” said Vasco based social activists Hasan Khan.
Similarly as the local panchayat has no other land for setting up garbage dumping/segregation facility, a site that also falls under eco sensitive zone in Santerant is being used as garbage dumping site despite the Indian Navy raising serious objections since the site falls under flying zone and could pose threat to flight safety due to bird hits.
Herald came across another two major eco-sensitive areas used for dumping of waste collected from the villages of Sancoale, Chicalim, Verna, Nuvem, Loutolim and Cortalim. The first site is located at the top of the Cortalim Hill and in an isolated area close to the PWD water reservoir. The access to this site is through the road leading to the PWD water supply unit at Consua. Due to the intense forest cover, it became an easy and affordable dumping ground for garbage dumping.
“There are two huge pits behind Meta strips which are being used for dumping of mixed garbage. Garbage collected from Sancoale village is being dumped at the first pit, while second pit is being used by other contractors collecting garbage from neighbouring villages,” confessed one of the contractors to Herald but wished not to be named.
Another such illegal garbage dumping site is located in a plot at IDC Verna. One can find loads of garbage dumped at the site while every day, a new load gets accumulated here and all this is happening right under the nose of local Panchayat bodies who claim helplessness because they are unable to keep a watch on the site and nab the culprits. But in the bargain, the ecology in the area is falling victim to human disaster. Whether the new panchayat bodies under Mormugao taluka would take special note of such illegal dumping of waste/thrash and would make any attempts to protect eco sensitive zones or not only time will tell. However, there is no doubt that the eco-sensitive areas under Mormugao taluka are facing severe threat and there is urgent need to act and protect environment, before it’s too late.
