Mapusa River a tributary of Mandovi River served as a lifeline in the past for the neighboring villages to transport their farm produce and spices in canoes via waterways. The Captain of Ports (Capitao de Porto), patrol vessel used to navigate from Panjim to Mapusa Tar Bridge, also, the Portuguese tourist vessels used to dock as it was then a free navigational route.
Today, the river is highly polluted and covered with thick vegetation. To add to it, all types of waste and construction debris have been dumped into it, and the river width has shrunk at many points due to construction activities. The mangroves on the banks have grown wild, which is resulted in water clogging. Over the years, residential and commercial buildings along the banks have polluted the river by discharging sewage and effluents in it, which has caused the area to stink.
On NH-17, the road and the bridge have blocked the navigational waterway traffic due to which silt has formed upto Green Park Hotel.
I request the concerned authorities to re-study the development and save the Mapusa River from dying slow death.
