NAVIN JHA
navin@herald-goa.com
The residents of Vidyanagar in Zuarinagar, Sancoale have raised serious concerns over the heavy vehicle passing through the10 metre wide internal road leading to MES College as well as to other residential colonies in Vidyanagar. Agitated residents claimed that since the last few weeks, there has been a sudden increase in the heavy vehicle movements thereby posing a high risk to the lives of people and moreover to over 1000 students studying in MES College and Airways school.
“We have a strong objection over the movement of mud and boulder laden trucks which are using the internal road from the four lane highway junction to MES College, Zuarinagar. Earlier the said transportation was limited. However, we recently noticed that nearly 100 trucks have begun plying on the 10 metre wide road. All these trucks have been making regular trips on a daily basis to a construction site of a multi-housing complex which is coming up behind MES College,” said Edward Fernandes, President of Vidyanagar resident’s welfare association.
Fernandes further said, There are five different residential colonies in Vidyanagar residential area including Bharat Nagar, Park Street, Aman, Sidharth, Mother Theresa colony, Suryanagar and about 1500 people are residing in these colonies. Besides that, there are two educational institutions and a school and the lives of the students as well as residents are at a high risk due to the speeding of the trucks which provide mud and boulders to a multi-level construction site behind MES College. This road is now a death trap for everyone.”
Another resident claimed, “We have been living under constant fear despite requesting the drivers. They don’t slow down and treat our internal road as part of the NH 17 B highway. What is more irritating is the pollution emanating from these trucks. Sadly we have complained to concerned officials about the menace but all our pleas have fallen on deaf ears,” said Chetan Goti, a local resident of Vidyanagar.
Panch member Sharan Meti who is representing the said ward in Sancoale Panchayat said, “To avoid any untoward incident from speeding traffic on the internal road, we had moved a proposal before the state administration through the Panchayat seeking notification to put some speed breakers at a few locations. However, the consent is yet to be received from the office of the Collector. On behalf of residents, I would again request our Minister and local MLA, Alina Saldanha to take up the issue with the collector to get a notification issued to put a few speed breakers on the road,” he said.
Meanwhile, the concerned citizens of Vidyanagar on Thursday decided to launch an agitation against the movement of the trucks if the same is not stopped in two weeks’ time. The residents have also decided to make a representation to the deputy collector and sub-divisional magistrate of Mormugao and also to the district collector seeking some concrete action from their side.
