PANJIM: The beach cleaning controversy just does not seem to die down as Herald brings to you how the Department of Tourism ignored its own inspection team’s report on beach cleaning.
The Tourism Department had formed a monitoring committee for beach cleaning in the State and the report of the committee member has been startling.
Crish Phadte, an information assistant, in his inspection report, a copy of which is in possession of Herald, had clearly stated that the contract has been awarded even at the places where there is no scope for beach cleaning.
“I had brought to the notice by my earlier notes that some of the beaches in Goa in recent past have gone underneath water due to sand erosion and also due to natural calamities,” says the report of Crish Phadte, information assistant dated December 22, 2014, months after the mechanised cleaning tender was awarded to Bhumika Cleantech and Ram Engineers.
The report further says, “However, some of these beaches are included in beach cleaning contract by the department where there is no scope of beach cleaning works.”
Herald investigations revealed that the length and breadth of the beaches, which is one of the important aspects in the tender, have been grossly overestimated over the physical area of the beach.
For example the Vagator-Anjuna stretch is approximately 3 kilometres, however, the length shown in the tender is 7 kms.
What is even more shocking is that the rate applied for cleaning of beach stretch is Rs 3600 per km per day. The rate is also applicable to beaches where there is no scope of cleaning, where there is no width or length or beaches that are not visited by tourists.
For example, Canaguinim has no beach left, in Cola there is no scope of work as the beach is hardly 100 metres, the northern side of Anjuna is full of rocks, while Cabo de Rama is also full of rocks, Bambolim is another rocky area and a substantial area of Keri has been eroded.
Further, Phadte goes on to say that the move will only benefit contractors. “This will certainly benefit contractors and will be loss to the exchequer,” he said in the report. Further, to avoid such issues he recommended a resurvey of beaches with assistance from NIO officials, Fisheries Department, NIWS “and wherever there is no scope for beach cleaning works those could be deleted”.
The inspectors also found that beach cleaning work at Colva, Betalbatim, Majorda, Utorda, Arossim, Velsao, Sernabatim, Benaulim, Varca, Fatrade, Zalor, Cavelossim and Mobor were unsatisfactory.
