TEAM HERALD
MARGAO: It would be exactly a month and half on Monday since the Margao Municipal Council launched its ambitious door-to-door waste collection program.
Sadly, the 170-odd workers engaged by the civic body are awaiting payment for the month of August and they continue to keep their fingers crossed over the payments as the civic body is yet to receive the government sanction for the funds till date.
The Margao Municipality had last week faxed the monetary proposal to meet the manpower and vehicle requirements amounting to Rs 64 lakh for three months, beginning from August. Sources in the know said though the government has accepted in principle to fund the door-to-door waste collection exercise for three months, the official sanction for the funds has not yet been received by the civic body so far.
When Herald contacted Savio Coutinho, a member of the MMC solid waste management Cell to shed light on the fate of the payments to the 170 beleaguered daily wage workers, he said the Civic body has till date not yet received the official sanction for the funds. “I have received positive signals from the DMA’s office that the funds to pay the workers wages will flow in soon”, Coutinho felt.
Sources said the Margao Municipal team of Councillors, who had gone on a junket to Hyderabad have returned on Sunday, raising hopes that Chairperson Gonzaco Rebello will take up the wage payments with the government on a priority basis.
Meanwhile, though it’s now a month and half since the MMC started the door to door exercise, sources in the know said the Civic body have till date not received the entire quota of bins for distribution to the households.
