Team Herald
VALPOI: The Nagargao village panchayat has lodged a written appeal with the Sattari Deputy Collector to put a stop to swimming at the Ustem Bandhara. Visitors to the site have been causing havoc and leaving behind a trail of trash.
Meanwhile, the panchayat members and villagers have taken it upon themselves to clean up the area and remove the pile of bottles left behind by the visitors.
The unruly visitors have also left holes in the wooden boards used to block the water flow at such sites, causing concern among locals. As a result, Nagargao panchayat and the Irrigation Department at Valpoi were requested to take the necessary steps to curb this menace.
The panchayat held a meeting after receiving complaints from the locals, who pointed out that the bandhara was built for agricultural purposes. Numerous orchards and fields in the village rely on water from this bandhara, and hence, it is essential to maintain the water body’s ecological balance.
Sarpanch Sandhya Khadilkar, Deputy Sarpanch Rama Kharwat, panchayat members Mamu Kharwat, Devyani Gaonkar, Urmila Gawas, Rajendra Abhyankar, and locals took part in a cleanliness drive on Friday to remove the empty alcohol bottles discarded by the visitors.
Sarpanch Sandhya highlighted that the growing menace at the site is posing a threat to the bandhara, which is the lifeline of many farmers in the region. “We have appealed to the Deputy Collector to put a ban on visitors at Ustem Bandhara,” she said.
