SATURDAY, APRIL 27, 2024
Local MLA Churchill Alemao has demanded that the contractor reconstruct the walkway, but surely this calls for more than that, perhaps even an inquiry. The fact that the contractor has not yet been paid for the work, as it the project is yet to be completed, does not absolve the contractor of not meeting all acceptable standards for the portion that has been completed. Locals are clear that the project that commenced in 2019 was nearly complete and that there had been opposition to it throughout, pointing out to procedural lapses. The main questions are, how and why did the collapse take place? Who, if anybody, will be held accountable?
In this connection, the local parish priest Fr Roger Godinho’s observation that ‘being in Goa, the engineers and contractors being based in Goa why can’t the environmental conditions of Goa be understood’, is not just relevant but places the entire issue into perspective. Goa’s heavy monsoon and the coastal terrain are not new to local engineers and contractors. Adequate safety measures have to be added at the planning and design stage to offset the effects of all these factors. This is logical and practical. But further, the priest points out that the walls were not built technically as there are no beams, no pillars, and that last month he had advised the engineer to ensure that enough water is poured into the mud to tighten it in the same manner the roads are constructed.
It doesn’t end there and architect Royla Fernandes points out that the collapse has proved that the site was not the ideal one for the walkway. She points out that the embankments have sunk because of the additional pressure on the retaining wall. If a lay person and a technical person can point out to the flaws in choosing the site and in the design, what were the engineers, contractors and the government agency – Goa State Infrastructure Development Corporation – doing at the time of conceiving the project and during the construction? The corporation under whose aegis this walkway project was undertaken has to answer every single one of these questions. There has to be accountability in government service, without which instances such as this will continue and increase.
Since the collapse of the walkway occurred during the construction stage, it can still be remedied. But, the collapse cannot be viewed in isolation. Local residents have pointed out that this is part of the Kharebhand-Orlim-Cavelossim project. Following the collapse of this portion, the entire project may have to be reviewed, especially the structure’s stability. Inspections of the project have to be conducted now and the improvements required will have to be incorporated to strengthen the structure. Or, as some of the villagers demand, it will have to be scrapped.
The priest further posed another relevant question of who is assuming responsibility for the wastage of public funds? Goa State Infrastructure Development Corporation has to answer this question and many others. Did the corporation staff inspect the project during the construction stage? And if they did, how is it that they did not notice the flaws in the construction? What is the next step that Goa State Infrastructure Development Corporation will be taking in this issue? It is too often that government departments and government contractors get away with shoddy works and no questions asked. This is people’s money that has been poured into this project and so many others. There has to be accountability and responsibility in government service. Without this there will be no improvement in the quality of the works undertaken.
