PANJIM: Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Monday said that the Smart City works undertaken by different agencies in Panjim are on schedule, except ‘one or two’ agencies that are executing the works at a slow pace. However, the experts and the residents of the city have a different view on the Chief Minister’s claim.
Ten odd different agencies including Imagine Panaji Smart City Development Limited (IPSDL) Sewerage and Infrastructural Development Corporation of Goa Limited (SIDCGL), Goa State Urban Development Agency (GSUDA), Public Works Department (PWD) and the Water Resource Department (WRD) are executing different works under the Smart City Mission in the capital city.
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“Smart City works are being carried out by many agencies. One or two agencies might be slow in the execution. Smart City Mission doesn’t directly execute the works on its own, it is done through different agencies,” Sawant told reporters on the sidelines of Smart Cities CEOs conference that is being held at a hotel in Old Goa.
Former Panjim Mayor Surendra Furtado said that people will come to know only during the monsoon if the projects are on the right track and on schedule.
“If CM has said that projects are on schedule then the time itself will tell. Monsoon will arrive in a few months time, which will itself speak. Let us wait,” Furtado said.
Environment activist and educator Vishal Rawlley said that the government should point out the names of the projects that are being timely executed and disclose the name of the particular agency.
“Saying something bravely upfront doesn’t mean it‘s true. You have to give facts and figures to back your claim,” Rawlley said.
“Smart City projects even before they start functioning break down one such example is the walkway at Campal where citizens complained of sewage leakage…so how are these projects well managed and timely? “ he quipped.
Former CCP councillor Patricia Pinto said that residents of Panjim are not informed about the Smart City projects.
“We have written to the MLA and Mayor for a presentation on all the Smart City projects on November 1, last year, and subsequently we sent reminders, but we are still waiting. We can see a lot of damage being done to the underground storm water drains while constructing the sewage manholes. Unfortunately the CCP doesn’t seem to be concerned. There are no CCP supervisors at these sites. This is definitely a situation for citizens to be worried,” Pinto said.
“We residents don’t even know what is happening in the city. There is no presentation made for us despite repeated requests to the CCP. People are not happy with what is happening,” Pinto said.
CCP Mayor Rohit Monserrate said that the Water Resource Department is one of the agencies whose works under Smart City Mission are on schedule and added that contractors due to different reasons are facing difficulties while executing the work.
Expressing disappointment, Monserrate pointed out that some agencies including GSUDA are executing the work of ‘smart roads and universal pavement’ without having a proper plan in place.
“Access roads are blocked from all sides, we cannot totally cause inconvenience to citizens,” he said.
The Mayor further said that for any future Smart City work, henceforth the CCP will ask the contractor for a road map of the project.
“We will consult with the people before executing the project and minimise inconvenience. The Smart City project deadline is October 2023; sewage work will be completed by March 31 after which the roads will be restored by the PWD,” he said.
