PANJIM: The Imagine Panaji Smart City Development Limited (IPSCDL) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Sanjit Rodrigues, IAS on Thursday said that the Smart City work is facing hurdles and becoming slow due to encroachments on pavements in the city roads.
Speaking to reporters in the city, Rodrigues said, ”We have to be fair to every body but pavements are universal. It has to be universal for every pedestrian. Our aim is to provide universal pavement at the same level. Now we are bringing the pavement to one level.”
“If some one has any objection then that will not be tolerated. We are requesting the shopkeepers to remove the encroachments, if there is some sense and support for the pedestrians. Universal pavement is one of the hallmarks of our work,” he said.
However, Corporation of the City of Panaji (CCP) Mayor Rohit Monserrate said that IPSCDL should not blame others if there is delay in the completion of the work.
”IPSCDL can check all the documents which are available. They are executing all the road work in the city. Now it is their responsibility to get everything done. If there is a delay then they should not pass the responsibility on somebody else. That is not correct. When everything goes well then they take full credit and when it goes wrong then they blame others,” Rohit said
On the encroachments, Rohit said, “If something is illegal then it is illegal. There is nothing which Corporation can do. If anything is found legal then nobody can touch but if it is illegal then Smart City should take action against encroachers,” he said.
