Just like the Supreme Court approved the Central government’s recommendation to end the stubble burning menace in States like Punjab and Haryana, Goa’s urbanised areas are also facing the heat of foliage especially dry leaves and twigs from trees.
Punjab and Haryana are spending over Rs 65 crores to curb stubble burning which is burning of the hay and dry foliage left behind after the crop is harvested.
Similarly in Margao often municipal workers face the flak for setting on fire dry leaves and twigs swept aside from the roads or even often neighbours in localities of Borda, Fatorda, Margao, Housing Board, urbanised Navelim and Aquem are sparring over smoke and fires caused from dry leaves and twigs.
Sanjit Rodrigues, Managing Director Goa Waste Management Corporation, (GWMC), explains that as of now there are no rules on foliage addressed by the Solid Waste Management and hence they should be treated as wet waste and be put in the wet waste bins.
Deputy Chairperson Tito Cardozo of the Margao Municipal Council explains the problem in detail that his municipality faces.
“Firstly, leaves and twigs are gathered when Municipal workers carry out grass cutting or sweep off the leaves from the street and pile them besides the road or when branches are pruned by the Electricity Department linesmen as part of pre monsoon works. In either of the scenarios often there is no coordination of the municipal truck picking up this waste on the same day and this then flows in the nullah or storm water drain clogging these drains and creating a bigger menace. The need in such scenarios, I feel, is better co-ordination of the sanitary inspector or the municipal workers staff,” stated Tito.
While Ibrahim Anwar, who collects garbage from parts of ward 09 and ward 11, explains how many housing colonies fill up the green bin in Fatorda with dry leaves and twigs which are impossible to carry in the day to day garbage collection and picking those leaves means sometimes making extra trips for the real wet waste from homes.
“There are Supreme Court guidelines on classifying foliage as garbage and strict rules on not burning dry leaves as garbage along the streets. Often in the bylanes of Fatorda and Aquem, people living in independent homes or bungalows burn their dry leaves and especially during monsoons these damp leaves emanate massive fumes or smoke. Often when these leaves are swept off the road there are plastic wrappers that are also burnt and these fumes rise to buildings into flats and apartments of people living on the third and second floor leaving asthma patients, children and senior citizens breathless. We hope the MMC would address the issue of burning dry leaves and garbage in city neighbourhoods,” stated Donald Pereira, a Borda resident who often spares with his neighbours since smoke bellows from their dry leaves into his second floor flat.
But MMC workers, who sweep KTC Bus stand, Margao old bus stand, Gandhi Market, New Market area, Colva Circle junction or even the SGPDA market complex, admit that no guidelines have been issued to them by the municipality and hence they continue to burn the dry leaves though it’s a smoky pollution problem.
