TEAM HERALD
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MARGAO: The sand dune at Colva, which was partly destroyed by a Mumbai-based builder, will be left exposed to the rains this season, as the government has planned to take up the restoration work only after the monsoons around August-September.
Nearly three months after the sand dune was mercilessly cut down by the builder, both the Goa Coastal Zone Management Authority (GCZMA) and the Bio Diversity Board could not take up the restoration work over jurisdiction. While the GCZMA Member Secretary Levinson Martins had asked the Bio Diversity Board Member secretary Dr Nitin Sawant to take up the restoration work with the help of Water Resources department, the latter in turn maintained that the restoration work falls in the domain of the GCZMA.
The question over the jurisdiction seems to have consumed time and with the pre-monsoon showers lashing the state, Environment Minister Alina Saldanha on Wednesday told Herald that work on the sand dune restoration will be taken up only after monsoons.
After discussing the matter with the Water Resources Chief Engineer Nadkarni and top forest officials, Alina said that the WRD has suggested to take up the work around August-September. “Mr Nadkarni has opined that the restoration work, if carried out, will be an exercise in futility because of the drift currents during monsoons. As such, the WRD has suggested the restoration work around August-September during the reverse drift current,” Alina said.
She said the forest department will take up the work of planning saplings and creepers on the sand dune to ensure there’s no further soil erosion. “I will personally ensure that work on the restoration work is taken up and completed on scientific lines,” she added.
On March 5 last, Colva locals had cried foul over the destruction of the sand dune, demanding that the authorities and the builder restore the sand dune to its original condition. Sadly, though the Colva police registered an offense against the builder Dilip Basant Acquilla of Acquilla Properties Pvt Ltd under the Environment Protection Act, the case is yet to make any headway for reasons best known to the men-in-uniform.
