PERNEM: Hundreds of fruit bearing and medical plants were destroyed in a fire that broke out on a hill at Junaswada in Mandrem.
According to locals, an organisation named Davarukh had planted several thousands of plants in collaboration with the biodiversity board and the Forest Department on this open hill with a hope that these trees will help in balancing the biodiversity in the area of about 7.5 lakh sqm that is owned by government and was leased out to villagers.
Locals said that some two or three years ago, the said land was taken back by the government from the lease holders and handed it over go Goa Tourism Development Corporation (GTDC). Out of the total land, around 3000 sqm land has been allotted to Electricity Department for construction of power substation.
To take up the work of substation, a contract has been given to a private company from Panjim to clean the site however the contractor’s workers allegedly set fire to grass in the area. The flames quickly spread and destroyed hundreds of trees in the vicinity.
The youth from villages, associated with the organisation, carried gallons of water to douse the fire. The fire station was also alerted but fire fighters were helpless as there is no road access to the hill. Locals then reported the matter to the forest department and the police.
MLA Jit Arolkar who also visited the site said, “The electricity department is constructing a power substation in this area for which the government has handed over the land from the GTDC to the power department. The contractor who was asked to clean the land should have first notified the local panchayat and electricity department. I too was not been informed about this. Due to the contractor’s negligence, hundreds of trees have been reduced to ashes. The company must take responsibility to grow the trees and the police should take action against the contractor,” said Arolkar.
Forest Department officials later conducted a panchanama to ascertain how many trees were destroyed in the fire.
