On Tuesday, Goa woke up to bizarre news of stray dogs disrupting an Air India flight landing at Goa’s Dabolim airport. An Air India flight was forced to abort its landing as there were stray dogs running amok on the runway in the early hours of Tuesday. It may sound hilarious but it came as a rude shock to many frequent travellers, especially the ones who were on the flight – imagine their feelings at the moment the flight took off again. Anything could have happened if the dogs had not been spotted by the pilots. While there have been many instances of bird hits disrupting flight operations, it is still a shock as to how dogs can be allowed to wreak havoc on the runway? Kudos to the pilots, who observed the dogs along the runway and immediately informed the Air Traffic Control (ATC) staff.
The dogs were not sighted by the ATC staff because it was pitch dark. If that is the case then night operations have to be stopped, if there is no mechanism to check stray animals at night. Why risk passenger safety? The Navy later said, “AI 033 from Mumbai, while landing in Dabolim at around 3am on August 13, reported to ATC (about) dogs on runway. The aircraft was recovered safely in second approach. Being night hours, no dogs were sighted by the ATC and the runway controller.” Indian Navy later said that ‘proactive efforts’ are being undertaken to reduce the stray dog menace near the airport’s runway. They also said that sterilisation and relocation of up to 200 dogs from near the runway will be undertaken after a Memorandum of Understanding was signed with the State government.
Dabolim Airport is the only international airport in the state of Goa and operates as a civil enclave in a military airbase – INS Hansa. Now, in the current scenario, who is responsible for the mess – the Indian Navy or the Airport Authority of India. Stray dogs are a significant threat to air safety. On March 27, 2008, a Kingfisher Airlines aircraft was hit a stray dog on the runway at the HAL Bangalore International Airport, resulting in the aircraft’s landing gear collapsing. The aircraft skidded off the runway and its nose collapsed, and four passengers were injured. Imagine if a similar incident had taken place in Goa. Who would be held responsible? Where is the accountability?
Not only dogs, AAI and the Navy haven’t managed to get rid of the bird menace at the airport as garbage continues to pile around its vicinity. In 2013, after a bird-hit incident, Airport Authority of India (AAI) had asked the State government to remove garbage heaps lying around the facility as the litter lying strewn across several places near the airport attracts birds. Thereafter, Goa State Pollution Control Board officials had inspected Dabolim airport to check environmental and waste management practices at the airport and its compliance as per the environmental norms. GSPCB had found that AAI had not been treating garbage properly.
This move by GSPCB was triggered by the recommendation of a Parliamentary Standing Committee to check municipal waste management at major international and domestic airports. Major findings in this inspection were release of excess treated water from the Sewage Treatment Plant (STP) into the storm water drains without measurement (as there were no flow meter installed), unavailability of sampling points for the testing of treated water, unavailability of porthole at stack for environmental analysis by pollution control board personnel, etc.
But waste continues to pile up and AAI and Navy continue to blame the State government while the State blames the central agencies. Nonetheless, none are bothered about passenger safety.
