TEAM HERALD
bureau@herald-goa.com
PONDA: Claiming that the State government’s “zero tolerance to corruption” motto is an eye-wash, residents from Dhansade-Torla in Shiroda have accused the State government of turning a blind eye to a controversial stone quarry in the area.
Addressing media at Ponda on Monday evening, the residents expressed displeasure over the functioning of the present government.
According to the villagers, the stone quarry operation was stopped in 2010 during the then Congress government, but the operation restarted in August this year.
“It is surprising that none of the government departments acted on the complaints. The operation was stopped for a couple of days only after the media highlighted the issue,” said Priti Naik.
“In 2010, Shiroda MLA Mahadev Naik was at the forefront to stop the stone quarry; however, the situation has changed now. Looking at the situation, it gives us the feeling that government officials and politicians are supporting this illegal stone quarry,” alleged Naik.
“People, who are raising voice against this illegal stone quarry, are being threatened. Politicians are responsible for the mess and with government not taking action, only option left with us is to fight,” said Dasharath Naik.
Efforts to contact Shiroda MLA Mahadev Naik proved futile, as he did not answer the phone. Even Shiroda Sarpanch Sandesh Prabhudessai was unavailable for comments.
