TEAM HERALD
MARGAO: Picturesque and sleepy Rachol village – known for its historical monuments and Churches – will focus on uprgadation of sanitation, agriculture, Pissiculture and housing – as the village has been selected by Rajya Sabha MP Shantaram Naik under the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi’s Model village scheme.
One of the smallest villages of Salcete, with hardly around 2085 population, comprising of 1095 females and 990 males, Scheduled Tribes dominated Rachol has just 452 households with just around 133 BPL families, predominantly dependent on agriculture.
“The authorities will focus on sanitation, ownership rights of the tribal population, agriculture and pissiculture in the village. With the village facing a major sanitation problem, a Sewage treatment plant may help overcome the problem. Besides, efforts will be made to take health amenities and community programs to the door steps of the villagers”, informed Curtorim MLA Reginaldo Lourenco in the presence of Rachol Sarpanch Joseph Vaz and district Collector, Venancio Furtado on Wednesday.
“I had initially proposed Curtorim and Raia villages to the Rajya sabha MP under the model village scheme, but since these villages could not fit the bill because of the population, Rachol was finally selected under the scheme,” Reginaldo said.
The Curtorim MLA has promised his support to make Rachol a model village. “Though this scheme is being implemented under the PM’s scheme, there ought to be no politics on development,” he said.
Rachol Sarpanch Joseph Vaz expressed his satisfaction that his village has been selected under the PM’s model village scheme. “We have been instrumental in implementing many a schemes in the recent past. Selecting Rachol will only help in the upgradation of the houses and sanitation. We need to promote the youth talent. A football ground will help the village youth”, he said.
Both Reginald Lourenco and the Sarpanch Joseph Vaz, however, reiterated their strong opposition to the government’s plan to build the controversial Shiroda-Rachol bridge over River Zuari.
Collector Venancio Furtado said the process to make Rachol a model village will be set in motion once the proposal receives the nod of the gram sabha. He, however, said that no special funding of the facilities is mooted under the PM’s scheme and the authorities are mandated to ensure implementation of existing schemes of the Central and state government under the project.
