MARGAO: Town and Country Planning Minister Vijai Sardessai announced plans to make over the entire South Goa Planning and Development Authority (SGPDA) market at Margao at the cost of around Rs 25 crore while commissioning the scrubber cum drier machine provided by Gas Authority of India Ltd as its Corporate Social Responsibility.
The machine costing around Rs 10.30 lakh is manufactured by Taski, a Switzerland based company, and such machines are used to clean the floors of international airports the world over will be used to clean the retail fish market. In Goa, a similar machine is used at Zuri hotel while a hotel at Vagator uses a petrol fuelled machine.
The machine will be able to clean the entire retail fish market in three hours said the company representative who was demonstrating the machine that has two 200 litter tanks one to sprinkle water on the floor being cleaned and the other to collect the waste water.
The machine will have to be driven thrice over one span to clean it thoroughly and is expected to drastically reduce the work force employed by the cleaning agency entrusted the task of keeping the market clean.
“We are using a machine used to clean airports to clean the fish market so that people wearing leather shoes can come to this market,” said Vijai who also tried his hand at operating the machine and asserted that modernity is going to be the catchword for Fatorda constituency.
He announced that the government has approved expenditure of around Rs 25 crore to make over completely the entire SGPDA market in Margao. All the other retail market including the fruit and vegetable markets will be renovated.
Besides, the entire meat market where chicken, beef and pork is sold will be demolished and new market constructed that will also house the specialized laboratory being set up to test the food products.
He said the tender for this works should be out before the code of conduct comes into force for the Lok Sabha elections.
Meanwhile, constructing a new road near the new district hospital, including all underground maps in the ODP, no parking by the road side and development of Tinto as a heritage zone were some of the plans decided upon by officials at the review meeting with Town and Country Planning Minister Vijai Sardessai.
To complete the work on the North Main line of the sewerage network at Donvondem near the new district hospital, the road will have to be closed for a week and an alternate road will have to be constructed through the fields not to disturb the traffic flow.
Vijai asked the officials to meet the farmers and get their NOC to construct the alternate road.
