Team Herald
VALPOI: In a memorandum to the Valpoi Deputy Collector, Saleli residents on Monday demanded a ban on “outsiders” from visiting and creating nuisance at the waterfalls in the village during monsoon.
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Since the last few years, people from across Goa visit the waterfalls in Saleli during monsoon. Daily around hundreds plus visitors including trekkers and nature lovers visit the waterfalls and most of them behave in an unruly manner after consuming the alcohol and create nuisance in the village by polluting the village and the waterfalls by dumping plastic, garbage and other waste, alleged Saleli villagers and suspected that some of these visitors are involved in consumption of drugs.
“Around 90 per cent visitors behave like uneducated persons by dumping plastic, eatables and other waste at waterfall sites and in our village. We have already informed about such acts by the visitors to the panchayat and requested to initiate action against those for creating nuisance at the waterfalls, but the panchayat is yet to take any action,” a villager claimed.
“Two years ago, a youth from Pernem died on the spot at a waterfall in the village while performing stunts on his sports bike. He lost the control of the bike and died on the spot. So we demand that the Valpoi Deputy Collector prohibit all the ‘outsiders’ from visiting the waterfalls in the village. There are several waterfalls in our village, which are seasonal,” said another villager.
“In view of the coronavirus pandemic, we request the Valpoi Deputy Collector to prohibit ‘outsiders’ from visiting the waterfalls in Saleli. If the Deputy Collector fails to act, then we will come on the road,” the villagers warned.
