Team Herald
MARGAO: The Ambelim gram sabha while approving a Rs 93.64 lakh budget for the panchayat also asked the panchayat to undertake certain tasks so that the new panchayat body to be elected in May, will function smoothly.
Interestingly, MLA Benjamin Silva was conspicuous by his absence while aspiring MLA Marcus Silva was not only present, but participated in the deliberations. It would be pertinent to note that Benjamin and Marcus are ex-sarpanchas of the village.
The gram sabha had only 15 villagers attending – of whom five left midway – only five of the seven panchas present and the BDO representative. Most of those present were senior citizens with only three of them dominating the entire meeting.
The gram sabha approved a Rs 93.64 budget where major receipts were expected from the government and the projected expenditure was pegged at Rs 60.32 lakh with an expected savings of Rs 33.31 lakh.
The model code of conduct in force in Goa had its effect on the panchayat as the three member committee constituted by it at the last gram sabha to discuss and finalise the means of auctioning the shops and other means of increasing the panchayat revenue could not meet due to it.
A meeting of the said committee was fixed for March 4 and various matters including the modalities of auctioning the panchayat premises and panchayat collecting revenue from those who had leased out their premises to migrants were to be finalized. In a bid to help the new body that will be elected, the panchayat was directed to get instructions from the officials concerned regarding leave for staff including temporary staff and rules to appoint panchayat staff.
It was pointed out that the Velim panchayat that collects rentals of the shops and is supposed to share it with Ambelim panchayat is not doing so.
In a bid to implement Swach Bharat in the village and stop defecation in the open, the panchayat was asked to just inform the authorities the areas where community toilets were required by naming the owner of land and the survey number while the authorities would have to proceed further including obtaining NOC from the landlord.
Deputy Sarpanch Tyron Fernandes said there was no open defecation in the village but people were using pig cleaned toilets instead of having septic tanks. He also mentioned that there no family in Ambelim was Below Poverty Line thereby implying that poverty did not exist in the village.
While ex-sarpanch Marcus advised the panchayat to get some document executed in its favour from the person who had offered his land to set up the cattle pound, the panchayat argued that since people had objected to it, there was no point in taking anything in writing from the owner of the land.
While disclosing that the panchayat has got a cycle to collect garbage from households through corporate social responsibility, the panchayat members asked for a person to be employed to collect the garbage on daily wage basis with a payment of Rs 350 per day.
For the last gram sabha of the panchayat before the new body takes over, it was the deputy sarpanch who was answering all the questions while the sarpanch remained a mute spectator. Neither was any explanation given nor sought for the absence of two panchas.
