MARGAO: The Goa State Pollution Control Board while fining the Chinchinim Deussua panchayat Rs 25,000 has also asked it to clean the garbage dumped at two places in the village by Benny D’Costa failing which it threatened to file criminal proceedings against the Secretary.
Vide directions dated March 27, Ganesh Shetgaonkar, chairman of GSPCB observed that their inspection team found “huge dumps of mixed garbage” in mangroves and low lying area around 40 mts away from the banks of River Sal which is in violation of Rule 15 of the Solid Waste Management Rules 2018.
The inspection was conducted on February 27, 2019 following two complaints dated October 27, 2018 and February 14, 2019. It may be recalled that this issue was discussed at the Chinchinim Deussua gram sabha held on March 3, 2019.
The Chinchinim Deussua Biodiversity Committee took up the matter very seriously and got the whole area inspected for its flora and fauna and the threat faced by it due to the pollution and his was revealed at the Gram Sabha.
The panchayat has been asked to clean up the garbage dump within 10 days of receipt of the letter and recover the expenditure incurred from the polluter based on the “polluter pays principle”. Besides, the panchayat has been asked to submit, within 15 days, authorization granted to Benny and others to collect waste.
The panchayat has been asked to submit a compliance report within seven days of receipt of the directions.
