PANJIM: Goa Waste Management Corporation (GWMC) is set to take over collection of garbage from alongside highways from Goa State Infrastructure Development Corporation (GSIDC).
It has in-principle agreed to manage the garbage pilled along the national, state and district highways by taking over the contract from GSIDC, which is currently monitoring this.
“In a phased manner the corporation will take over the garbage management system of the entire State. In the first phase, the highway cleanliness contract is getting transferred from GSIDC to the waste management corporation,” GWMC Director Michael Lobo told Herald.
“We will float a tender and also monitor the functioning of the contractor to ensure that our highways are clean,” Lobo, who is also the Deputy Speaker, said.
The Corporation intends to set up a garbage collection station along the national, state and district highways which would be meant to stack the waste collected along the roadside. The waste stacks would be later picked up by the designated contractor’s labourers on a daily basis or on alternate days and would be transported to the waste management treatment facility for scientific disposal.
Pointing to the fact that non-collection of waste on a regular basis has led to garbage pilling up, Lobo said GSIDC does not have experts to monitor the contractors and has also failed to fix liability.
GSIDC, which five years ago had been roped into cleaning the highways, had appointed contractor BVG India Ltd for the task.
The contractor’s failure to lift garbage in a time-bound and scientific manner had led to pollution in the area with Goa State Pollution Control Board issuing notices to GSIDC and the contractor asking them to ensure effective and timely collection of waste from along the highways.
