TEAM HERALD
teamherald@herald-goa.com
MARGAO: Villagers of Raia and Curtorim on Saturday warned of a sustained agitation if the authorities bulldoze their way on the Sonsodo issue, even as they threatened to boycott the 2014 Lok Sabha polls if the issue is not settled by end of December.
At a meeting at Sonsodo, they disclosed plans to call on the Governor Bharat Vir Wancho and submit their stand on the issue and also explore legal options.
Reminding that people of Raia and Curtorim have been fighting against the Sonsodo stink and flies since the last several years, former Curtorim Sarpanch Orlando Rebello warned that the people of the two villages will have no option than to boycott the 2014 Lok Sabha polls if the Sonsodo issue is not resolved by the year end.
The Raia village Panchayat has also threatened to approach the National Green Tribunal and explore other legal options. Sarpanch Xavier Fernandes said people will be sadly mistaken if they think that only a few villagers have on the streets to protest against the sonsodo mess. “What is happening at Sonsodo is a complete sham. One issue we are fighting is the mud excavation, while the garbage issue is still not resolved till date,” Xavier added.
A teacher from Raia Lucia D’Silva said the people are not against the waste treatment plant, but are aghast over the way the authorities are handling the issue. “Nothing has changed at Sonsodo since the last two years. We are facing the stink and the flies,” she added.
Raia Panch member Isidore Rodrigues claimed that Fomento Green is cutting the hill to make space for garbage dumping. “Since the treatment plant at Sonsodo has failed to deliver the result, they are now excavating the mud to make way for waste,” he said, demanding to know the use of the plant when it is not functioning.
Activist Felix Dias warned the authorities not to underestimate the villagers. “They say that only a few people have come on the streets. If they try to bulldoze their way, we will oppose any move tooth and nail”, he said.
Social activist Raju Aiyar lamented that none of the authorities have so far shown to the people the permissions obtained by Fomento Green for cutting of the hill. “The people of Raia and Curtorim also want the treatment plant functional, but there is no transparency. They seem more interested in excavating the mud than in solving the issue”, he said. “This is not an issue of the gadda traders nor of language. We have come to the streets because of the health hazard”, he said, while taking a dig at the delegation of gadda traders and Konkani Bhasha Mandal which called on the MMC Chairperson expressing their support to the mud transporation.
