MARGAO: Incensed with the total disregard to public utilities and lack of discipline, Margao Municipal Council Chairperson Dr Babita Prabhudessai held an emergency meeting with officials on Thursday and directed them to take stringent action against violators including cancelling of their licence if possible.
She was angry over the fact that a restaurant owner and another sweet mart owner had laid huge pipes to release their waste water in the municipal drains that had resulted in clogging the drain as the waste had coagulated and solidified.
The mess was discovered when the municipal staff were going around cleaning the drains to prepare for the monsoons. The drain in front of Liberty Laundry was found to be totally clogged due to the waste released by the owner of Santosh Bhojanalaya and Bhavani Purohit.
“Our staff could not clean the mess and we had to use the services of the Fire Services who used their high pressure hoses to break the blockage and clear the drains,” revealed Dr Babita wondering what had happened to the civic sense of the people.
“While everybody is quick to blame the municipality how many are willing to admit it is because of their misbehavior that problems have occurred?” she asked and said she had instructed the staff to see if the licences of these two parties can be cancelled.
Besides, the municipal engineers have been instructed to block all openings from private places to the drains so that the drains only clear the monsoon water and not waste water from any structure.
She also pointed out that it is becoming very difficult for the council to find labourers. “We can pay only Rs 500 per day as wages while in the open market they get paid even up to Rs 700,” she said adding that it is but common to work where one gets paid more.
“Besides the DMA authorised us only on June 5 to take in more staff to carry out pre monsoon works,” she said adding that earlier this permission used to come in March or April.
She also disclosed that she had asked the council staff to re-start the drive against plastic carry bags in the markets.
