MARGAO: Reiterating that desilting of River Sal is a waste of public funds, the Shadow Council of Margao (SCM) has dared the government to punish those responsible for the same.
In a press release issued here, the SCM said that its earlier accusation that desilting of River Sal is a waste of money stands vindicated.
SCM said that exactly a year ago, when the work of cleaning of River Sal was launched, they had held a dharna near the wholesale fish market at Margao, at the River Sal portion. The dharna was organised protesting the waste of public funds in the guise of cleaning of River Sal, while the pollution sources remain unattended.
The Shadow Council sought to highlight the fact to all the villages along River Sal, as the cleaning work presently underway is a “pure eyewash and total wastage of public funds.”
The panchayats within whose jurisdiction River Sal passes through, have issued NOCs for the cleaning, with genuine hopes that this “life line of Salcete”, would regain its lost glory.
The SCM had made several representations to various government agencies with proof of the sources, which included raw sewage from sewerage chambers being diverted into River Sal. “At that time, the SCM was mocked at and accused of bringing hurdles in the development work,” the press note reads as.
“All are well aware that it will take nothing less than 3 to 4 years to plug all the sources of pollution, that too subject to the sewerage network falling in place, and the lines that have failed are replaced. But the sad fact remains as to how people’s money is shared and distributed in advance among the various departments through something called Budget. But every government finds out ways and means to exhaust the funds allocated to them, rather than spending based on priority,” SCM member Savio Coutinho said.
“Now that it is confirmed that the exercise of cleaning of River Sal was a waste of public funds, the SCM dares the government to pin those responsible for it,” the SCM press release says.
