Seldom do we think otherwise and wait for someone else to act against the garbage menace that has been turning the beautiful land of serene beauty into a dump yard, everywhere you go.
In Goa, the government and its agencies, right from the State level to the local self-governing bodies, are actually leading the citizens by example. It was shocking to witness that trucks belonging to the Margao Municipal Council (MMC) dumped unsegregated waste in the low-lying areas of Benaulim along the under-construction Western Bypass. The crime was caught on camera and the authorities concerned tried to underscore the gravity of the incident by informing the media that the waste would be removed from the site.
The Benaulim-MMC incident is not the first of its kind, such lawlessness is rampant right under the nose of the authorities in every town and village, be it along the highways or the internal roads. O Heraldo’s Citizen Herald page is flooded with reports from citizens about the garbage menace in their locality and how they fear that these blackspots could turn into the next Sonsoddo.
Today Sonsoddo, a neighbourhood in Margao, has become infamous for garbage dumping, thanks to the MMC. It is appalling to note that for decades MMC has not been able to manage its garbage and from a small pile, allowed a mountain heap of legacy dump at Sonsoddo. And now, the municipality spends lakhs of rupees of the public, transporting the waste to Saligao and Cacora to the waste treatment plants.
By not immediately taking action against those involved in the Benaulim-MMC crime, the authorities are emboldening those who are out to do brisk business at the cost of the State. Take a look at the debris and garbage dumped along the road from Merces circle to Panjim KTC circle. People are in the business of disposing of debris and garbage from construction sites, and nobody bothers where it lands up. Authorities turn a blind eye, perhaps knowing that action against one offender will open up a can of worms.
The tourism season has begun and the beach garbage collection contractors will begin cleaning up the beach areas everyday, but nobody is aware of where all the garbage goes after collection. All of a sudden new blackspots emerge on the outskirts of these coastal villages with garbage dumps, and nobody knows from where the garbage came and after a few days the panchayat is forced to clear the spot. The vicious circle continues.
Goa is perhaps the only State in the country with a Waste Management Ministry and in the last four years, the State has had two ministers. However, there has not been any major breakthrough in waste management, but chest-thumping over the Saligao waste treatment plant (established in 2016) which is showcased as unsung foreign technology to clean up Goa. The reality can be witnessed on the streets of the State. The Cacora plant based on the same technology is ready and waiting for the political heavyweights of the State for a formal inauguration. The Bainguinim site has been waiting for decades for a plant to be constructed, while housing complexes around the site planned much later have been constructed and the residents in these complexes are now opposing the plant. What a pathetic state of affairs, for a State with the highest GDP per capita in the country.
Just importing technology won’t solve problems, the will to engage against adversaries is a must for ‘Nital Goem’ to be beyond a mere slogan.
