PONDA: Water logging on the road near the petrol pump at the old bus stand in Ponda is an annual phenomenon during monsoon, but, on Sunday, the situation was totally different, as the area got virtually converted into a puddle filled with sewage.
The women vegetable vendors sitting on the footpath by the roadside complained that they lost business on account of the sewage overflowing from gutters accumulated near the petrol pump road.
The furious vendors further claimed that the stench was unbearable as sewage from a toilet was released into the gutters. The women said that sewage overflowed on account of the choked gutters.
Pondaites were surprised to witness the water logging at the old bus stand but the vendors claimed that though it rained on Saturday it was not rainwater but sewage.
They said this is the first time such an incident has taken place in the town and suspect that some people may have released sewage into the choked gutters which caused the entire area to stink.
“We could not consume food and lost customers today as they avoided visiting us due to unbearable sewage stench. Left with no option, we were forced to wear masks,” complained a vegetable vendor.
Meanwhile efforts to contact the PMC chairperson Ritesh Naik proved futile as he was not available for comments.
Social worker Viraj Sapre said it is sewage including human waste which has accumulated on the road and added that he would complain to the Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB).
Meanwhile, the shop owners from a residential building in the area said that on May 12 they had complained to the PMC Chief Officer, drawing his attention to the non-cleaning of gutters in front of Vishwalaxmi Building at Dada Vaidya Chowk.
Each day, after 6 pm, an unbearable foul odour starts emanating from the gutter choked with waste material, they complained.
The stinking gutters attract rats that enter shops and hotels and cause loss to the owners, the shop owners said. The shop owners said they had urged the Chief Officer to look into the matter and direct the staff concerned to clean the gutters before monsoon but in vain.
They claimed that the pavers in front of the above building are broken at several places.
