SATURDAY, APRIL 20, 2024
Team Herald
MARGAO: Two newly elected MLAs from South Goa - Ulhas Tuenkar and Antonio Vas on Wednesday assured to raise all the issues pertaining to the Zilla Panchayat in the Assembly session, especially regarding delegation of more powers to the local body.
Navelim MLA Ulhas Tuenkar and Cortalim MLA Antonio Vas were the ZP members, who have now been elected as MLAs in the recently held Goa Assembly elections. On Wednesday they were felicitated at the monthly meeting held at ZP office in Margao.
Chairperson Suvarna Tendulkar, besides Khushali Velip, Vice-Chairperson and Deepak Borkar, ZP member in their congratulation motion urged both the MLAs to pursue the issue pertaining to South Goa Zilla panchayat with the new government and push for more powers for the local body.
"Both the MLAs are former ZP members and are aware of the issues of this local body. It is our request that they should raise their voice in the Assembly in order to get the government delegate more powers to the Zilla Panchayat, besides resolving other issues,” Tendulkar said.
Khushali Velip expressed disappointment over the failure of former MLAs Clafacio Dias and Wilfred D'sa, who were also the ZP members, in giving the ZP its due.
"I am aware of all the issues faced by the South Goa ZP and hence I will ensure that these are brought to the notice of the government. I will surely raise voice in this regard in the Assembly," Tuenkar said.
He also assured of convincing other MLAs to press the government for more giving powers to the ZP, besides promising to follow-up on the proposed South Goa ZP Bhavan project.
MLA Antonio Vas also spoke on similar lines and assured his help in resolving the ZP issues by taking up those with the government.
"I have worked at grass-root level and I know the issues related to people. It was our demand to give more powers to the ZP and I will surely pursue the same with the government,” he assured.
In this meeting, the South Goa Zilla Panchayat also passed a resolution urging the government to hasten the pace for laying the foundation stone of the new Borim bridge to ease the chronic traffic congestion problem.
"The traffic congestion at the Borim junction is beyond control. Hence, the new Borim bridge is need of the hour,” he said.
Speaking to media persons after the meeting, Chairperson Suvarna Tendulkar said that the local body will bring to the notice of the government the old rate of GSR which is hampering the development works due to rise in material cost.
"We have also resolved to black list the contractors who are found not completing the works in a given period of time. One ZP member also raised the issue of playing ground, which is still pending but shockingly, the concerned contractor is claiming that the work has been completed," Tendulkar said.
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