SATURDAY, APRIL 27, 2024
Aaron Fonseca Assagao
The government may well be tom-tomming about doing underground cabling work in Goa but the fact is that this work is completely haphazard, disoriented and smacks of corruption, leaving people high and dry and greatly disappointed.
It's been about a month since the underground cabling work has started in Assagao but all along it's been only trouble and trouble and confrontation between the contractor and locals.
The Power Department has completely failed in all respects to ensure good quality work and one wonders whether there have been great kickbacks involved. As per the contract signed, it has come to light that the contractor employed by the power department is supposed to keep a plumber and a worker with him to ensure that the water pipelines damaged are instantly repaired as this is peak summer season. There is no plumber, no worker to repair damaged water lines, no PWD nor electrical supervisor supervising the job and the contractor is just seen damaging the water pipelines and disrupting water to the locals who are still waiting for their lines to be repaired as even the PWD linemen seem to be playing hide and seek and trying to wash their hands saying they are overburdened with rectification of faults at every step?
I would like to ask the power minister whether this is a rational way of doing underground cabling by disrupting the water supply to people. Again the earth that is dug for making trenches for laying cables is not properly filled. A road roller should immediately be employed to level the ground which again is not happening. To add insult to injury many people are falling sick and getting throat allergies due to unprecedented dust in the air. There should have been water tankers to wet the soil to ensure that dust is minimised in the atmosphere.
All in all, this is a total scam, total haphazard, corrupt practice with no coordination at all between the PWD and the Power Department. The minister concerned must clarify whether he feels happy in depriving people of water during this time and subjecting people to great inconvenience.
