Ward number 17 of the Mormugao Municipal Council witnessed quite a few changes in the last five years as incumbent councillor, who got elevated to MLA post the 2012 polls – Carlos Almeida – resolved several important issues faced by residents. A large chunk of other issues, however still went unnoticed and unattended by the councillor cum MLA.
After being elected, the three time councillor used his experience to take up the issue of garbage on a priority basis and today, the entire ward has an effective door to door garbage collection system. As a result, the garbage menace has been eradicated from the main highway that runs through the ward.
“Garbage was my top priority and today, I can proudly say that all areas in my ward have an effective door to door garbage collection system. This is possible only due to the cooperation of the people in the ward and constant monitoring,” Almeida said and added that the situation was similar with roads. In the meantime, a ground report has revealed that there are a few issues which the people face that escaped the attention of the councillor. Although there is no issue with the availability of water as such, residents have been facing severe hardships with regard to the timing of the resource received by them for the last several years. Their request, though, has fallen on deaf ears.
“We have become like watchmen. We receive water only post midnight and thus we have sleepless nights as we’re tasked with storing water for use during the day,” said Pallavi Amonkar, a housewife from Shantinagar.
The improper access road for residents of shipyard colony in this ward has caused more problems for residents and hasn’t been resolved for the last several years. The of a service road for residents staying alongside NH17B and the dangerous Shantinagar junction has become a death trap and requires immediate attention, but none seems to be given. “As the NH17B passes through Shantinagar, we have to travel much further just to take a U-turn every time we leave home or come back and all this is due to the absence of a service road which is mandatory under NH norms,” said Harish Mahale, another resident.
The issue that plagues residents the most, however, is the lack of a proper sewerage line. Due to this, most gutters and storm water drains have turned into sewage canals and give off a foul odour. “In order to resolve this issue, I have already prepared a project plan to connect the area. But for that, I have proposed a pumping station at Dactollem. Following that, all the areas in my ward will be connected with a sewage line,” Almeida asserted.
