MARGAO: The traditional fishing community from Assolna carried out an inspection of the dredging work of River Sal along with Captain of Ports (CoP) officials on Wednesday.
They raised concerns about damage to the fragile ecosystem, bunds and vegetation on the river banks due to the haphazard manner in which they alleged the dredging activity had been cutting shrubbery and dumping silt by the river.
Velim MLA Cruz Silva was also part of the inspection, during which the fishermen took the officials via boat to get a first-hand view of the river side and to assess the complaints of the fishermen.
The MLA took the officials to task and asked that the damaged areas be restored to their original condition and gave the example of displaced mangroves etc. Silva also that the people will not accept any excuses from the officials.
The fishermen also insisted that whatever corrective measures have to be taken up are done quickly as the piled-up mud on the riverbanks could create problems in the monsoon and affect the natural flow of water.
The areas on the riverbanks where the traditional fishermen keep their boats and access the river have also been affected by the dredging activity.
It may be recalled that in the recent past, the local fishermen had expressed their fears that the desilting and dredging work of River Sal could impact their livelihood as they were unhappy with the manner in which the work was being carried out and the subsequent destruction of the environment.
Incidentally, there have been objections in other parts of the taluka about the dredging activity and there has been a common consensus amongst the villages that the desilting work be monitored and that environmentalists or people with traditional knowledge be consulted so that further damage
is prevented.
