VASCO: Fifteen years later, farmers from Sindolim in Sancoale will be able to start cultivating their fields from this month-end onwards as the village panchayat in association with Zuari Agro Chemicals Ltd (ZACL) on Wednesday began the work of de-silting besides removing garbage and weeds from their fields which were left uncultivated for years.
According to the information, the affected farmers group from Sancoale approached sarpanch Ramakant Borkar and briefed him about the hardship faced by them in cultivating their fields. The farmers claimed that their fields cannot be cultivated due to presence of garbage, silt and sewage flowing from the Zuarinagar slums. It was also informed that those farmers, who tried to cultivate their fields, suffered from skin diseases due to pollution in their fields.
Taking strong cognizance of the same, Borkar conveyed a meeting with ZACL officials and sought their help in supporting the farmers cultivate their fields. After three joint meetings with ZACL officials, farmers and the panchayat, it was agreed that ZACL would remove the silt, garbage and waste material from the fields and make the same cultivable.
“It is due to the hard and sincere efforts put in by our sarpanch Ramakant Borkar and panchayat that we would be taking up farming from November-end, after gap of 15 years. Today over two lakh square metres of farming land was left unused due to filth present in the fields and the same will now be brought under cultivation,” said Antonio Moniz, a farmer from Sancoale.
Speaking to reporters, sarpanch Ramakant Borkar slammed elected leaders from Cortalim for neglecting the farmers’ needs. He said, “All bundhs in Cortalim have broken; nullahs have been filled with silt and instead of taking up such work, our leaders are engaged in organising eye camps or filling of DSS or Ladli Laxmi forms,” he informed.
