TEAM HERALD
bureau@herald-goa.com
VALPOI: Dismissing all allegations of a scam in the e-tablets scheme, Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar on Saturday insisted that attempts were being made to malign his image and to fool the public.
The chief minister was speaking at a function at the hall of newly inaugurated bus stand to inaugurate three major projects in Valpoi.
“A supplier had come to me with a request that he would supply locally made e-tables. However, I turned down his request because locally made e-tablets by assembling parts will not have long durability. Besides, another supplier from the list was not considered because his name had been blacklisted,” informed Parrikar.
The chief minister inaugurated various projects that had been initiated by Valpoi MLA Vishwajit Rane during the earlier Congress government and they included a 110-bedded hospital, a market complex, a vegetable market and a bus stand at Valpoi.
Admitting that the three projects had been delayed due to legal formalities, Parrikar made it clear that the three projects were inaugurated due to other factors and not due to ongoing protests by vendors and shopkeepers outside the Valpoi Municipal Council building.
“These projects had been delayed because legal formalities were not completed and some formalities are yet to be completed. The inauguration had to be done on Saturday because the Code of Conduct (for the Lok Sabha polls) is likely to be in place within the next two days. So, don’t be under the wrong impression that inauguration was done after succumbing to the pressure from agitators who staged the protest,” said Parrikar.
Parrikar admitted that while the projects have been inaugurated, they will not be put to immediate use on account of pending formalities.
“The Valpoi Hospital will take at least eight days to be shifted to the new premises, while bus stand will take at least a month for full-fledged operations. The KTC has declined to take charge of the bus stand till pending works, which include the widening of a culvert, a new approach road and other legal formalities are completed,” said Parrikar.
“The market complex cannot be made to function unless and until all legal formalities are done, including the signing of a lease agreement, occupancy certificate and a clearance from the town and country planning department,” he added.
Deputy Chief Minister Francis D’Souza also informed that the VMC administrative building would be ready by June. D’Souza requested the chief minister to ensure that all development projects in the State are taken up in a time-bound manner, as unnecessary delays lead to inconvenience for the government and the people.
Opposition leader Pratapsing Rane appealed to the VMC to maintain cleanliness at all the projects.
Others present included Shripad Naik, Vishwajit Rane, Dr Pramod Sawant, Satyavijay Naik, Vishwajeet K Rane, Arun Desai, Ramdas Shirodkar, Shaizin Shaikh, VMC councilors as well as sarpanchas and panchas of various panchayats.
