PONDA: At last, the locals heaved a sigh of relief as the authorities concerned after three decades cleaned and restored the choked waterway at the Durbhat ferry ramp.
It may be recalled that the waterway at Durbhat was in a neglected state for the past thirty years when the roadway transportation commenced. For the past many years, it was filled with sludge, silt and other waste causing the entire area to stink, besides trees and bushes were also dumped in it.
Panch member Krishna Naik said “After following up the matter with various government authorities including the Water Resources Department (WRD), machinery was provided for cleaning the waterway of debris and mud. After two days of work, the waterway was restored to its original condition. Local fishermen were finding difficulties in anchoring their canoes due to the choked waterway. After desilting the waterway they can now park their canoes.”
The choked nullah in the area was also cleaned.
Speaking to O Heraldo, senior citizens recalled that various kinds of goods including roof tiles were loaded and unloaded at Durbhat.
The elders said that they were happy that the choked waterway was cleaned at last.
A senior citizen recalled that he used to build canoes at the spot.
Meanwhile, the locals have demanded that the gutters be covered with concrete slabs at the Durbhat junction.
According to local Eknath Fadte, for the past few years, despite installing metal grill covers on gutters, many riders have sustained injuries in accidents after slipping on the grill covers.
The locals demanded that the iron grill covers be removed and called for replacing them with concrete slabs to prevent accidents.
