TEAM HERALD
PERNEM: In a novel bid to create awareness on solid waste management, four cyclist supported by the Mineral Foundation of Goa (MFG) began a five-day tour of 58 panchayats across all talukas of the State.
The All Goa Cycle rally was flagged-off by Panjim MLA Sidharth Kunkalienkar at Panjim in the presence of MFG Chairman Nathan Chowgule and MFG CEO S Sridhar.
The cyclists, Parag Rangnekar, Sangam Patil, Ramesh Gaonkar and Sanket Naik, travelled through the villages of Betim, Reis-Magos, Nerul, Candolim, Calangute, Baga, Anjuna, Arpora, Assagao, Siolim, Chopdem, Mandrem and Arambol in the morning session.
At Arambol, the cyclists made a power-point presentation for students of Harmal Panchakroshi HSS, followed by an interaction with ZP Member Arun Bandhakar and members of the Arambol Panchayat.
The rally then moved to Ibrahmpur via Pernem, Poroscodem, Warkhand-Nagzar, Casarvanem, Alorna and Hankhane, where the participants had a discussion with the Panchayat about their participation in the dry-waste collection scheme of the SWM Cell of the State government.
Appreciating the initiative, Arambol Sarpanch Suvarna Thakur said, “Ours is a panchayat with growing tourism. We fear that too much of garbage can hamper growth of tourism. Since we have a lot of commercial establishments, the waste scene is a little complicated. We have put systems in place to ensure collection of waste from commercial establishments and also collection of dry-waste from households.”
The cyclists also interacted with foreign tourists along their route.
Simon Soendergaart and Mette Petersen, tourists from Denmark, opined that education and awareness is the key towards tackling the issue of solid waste.
“Back home, our children are taught civic sense from an early age, which makes them responsible citizens. Goa though is much better compared to Mumbai from where we have arrived,” said Soendergaart.
Commenting on his solid waste management initiatives, Swapnil Naik, a hotel owner from Arambol said, “It is the responsibility of every individual to take care of his waste. The wet-waste from my hotel is fed to cattle every evening. The dry-waste collection should happen in the evening, instead of morning, since we accumulate a lot of milk and lassi packets, which start smelling immediately.”
