PANAJI: The Corporation of City of Panaji (CCP) has commenced pre-monsoon work on a war footing after the polling for general assembly election was held on February 4, revealed Mayor Surendra Furtado.
Addressing the media, Furtado informed that many drains in the city have been cleaned, and added that near Social Welfare Department building, the CCP chief supervisor found that sewage is being released into a drain by the department.
He said that Sanjit Rodrigues had brought it to the notice of the department some 5-years back, and even urged the department to repair the pipeline and stop releasing sewage into the drain.
He said that the drain is being cleaned, and added that the CCP has plan to seal it to stop further release of the sewage into it.
The Mayor even called the director to check the drain but he ‘refused’ in to give in to the demand saying he was unable to comply with the demand due to a health reason.
Meanwhile, the director of Social Welfare Department said that the department building is 105 years old, and added that the waste in the drain was not released from the department building as there is no sewerage line connected to the drain.
He said that he has taken over the post at the department some 6 months back, and promised that he would write a letter to the PWD urging it to look into the problem at the earliest.
Meanwhile, Furtado said that nearly 35 labourers have been temporarily engaged by the CCP in addition to 40 regular employees in pruning the trees and cleaning the city. He said, “Let the government give me a site for dumping dry leaves and debris, and I can assure that there will not be a stone on any of the city roads.”
He said that Saligao garbage treatment plant was treating the city garbage, but it has stopped treating the garbage for the last 10 days, saying the plant is closed for maintenance, and so the CCP trucks loaded with garbage are parked at the gate.
He alleged that the Panaji MLA Sidharth Kuncaliencar had made false promise to the people in the election manifesto that the city garbage would be treated at the Saligao garbage treatment plant, and now the plant is refusing to accept the garbage.
A source at the environment department informed that during the high-level task force meeting on solid waste management, which was presided over by the Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar, in December 2016, it was resolved that the waste from village panchayat of Taleigao, Corporation of City of Panaji and Ponda Municipal Council should be considered for treating at the Solid Waste Management Facility at Calangute/Saligao ‘only after environment clearance and consent for enhanced capacity (187.5) is granted.’
Presently, the plant capacity has reached its saturation point, and there is no scope for treating more than 100 tonne of garbage per day.