decade-and-half later, fate of Navelim-Benaulim bridge in limbo
MARGAO
One had strongly batted for the bridge, while the other opposed it tooth and nail in a battle spanning close to a decade and a half.
In a sheer coincidence, both the bridge proponent and its opponent bit the dust in the recently-held Assembly electoral battle in their respective constituencies, throwing up a moot question on the fate of the Navelim-Benaulim bridge abandoned midway for a decade now.
Former PWD Minister Churchill Alemao, who had made a determined bid to complete work on his dream bridge with the support of the Pramod Sawant dispensation in the last five years, could not retain Benaulim in the election.
His arch political rival from the other side of river Sal, Avertano Furtado, too failed in his attempt to make a political comeback from Navelim.
Indeed, the fate of the Navelim-Benaulim bridge over River Sal hangs in the balance for the simple reason that work could not resume on it even despite the fact the PWD had floated a tender to complete the balance work.
That’s not all. After Churchill, who was supporting the Pramod Sawant dispensation, made a strong pitch for the completion of the bridge, the authorities had provided police protection for the men and machinery working at the site on the Sinquetim side.
The work, however, did not resume after Avertano and local residents of Sinquetim stuck to their guns in opposing the bridge tooth and nail.
Inquiries by The Goan with the PWD officials have revealed that work on the Navelim-Benaulim bridge did not resume after the contractor had feared for the security of his workers and machinery.
Says PWD Executive Engineer Prasad Panandikar: “We had re-tendered the work on the balance portion of the bridge after the government had given its nod. The contractor, however, could not resume the work due to stiff opposition from Navelim. The PWD higher-ups will now take a call on the fate of the bridge”.
Officials pointed out that the government has already spent around Rs three crores on the bridge over the river Sal. “Only the slab over the structure needs to be put now and build the approach roads. We will have to wait and see how to go about the matter given that public money has already been spent on the construction of the bridge,” remarked an official.
Work on the Navelim-Benaulim bridge at the river Sal point at Sinquetim was abandoned in 2012 after Avertano emerged as a giant killer by dethroning Churchill from Navelim in that year. Together with his Benaulim counterpart, Caitu Silva, who had made it to the Legislative Assembly by defeating Churchill’s daughter Valanka, the duo had made a strong pitch with then Chief Minister late Manohar Parrikar, who had ordered a stop to the work after he returned to power in 2012 riding on a strong anti-Congress wave.
New Navelim MLA says will have to study issue
MARGAO: Even as the two former MLAs, Churchill Alemao and Avertano Furtado, battled it out over the Navelim-Benaulim bridge over a decade and a half now, newly-elected BJP MLA Ulhas Tuemkar has said he would prefer to study the issue by taking people into confidence before taking a call on the future of the controversial bridge.
Aware of the controversy surrounding the Navelim-Benaulim bridge over the last decade and a half, Tuemkar pointed out that there are diverse views on the bridge, with some people opposing the project while others insisting on its completion.
“This is a decade-old issue, which has not yet been addressed. Since the government has already spent funds on the project, I would like to do a study before taking a call. During my visit to Navelim constituency, I will interact with the stakeholders, including the panchayat members and villagers, to elicit their views and opinions before coming to any conclusion,” the MLA said.
Still opposed to project: Avertano
MARGAO: Former Minister Avertano Furtado has said there’s no change in the stand of the people of Navelim on their opposition to the Navelim-Benaulim bridge.
Churchill Alemao, who lost the election from Benaulim, however, said it is for the government to take a decision on the bridge since taxpayers’ money has already been spent on the project.
Avertano told The Goan that the election result does not change his stance on the controversial bridge. “Defeat in the Assembly polls does not change my stance on the bridge. People of Navelim have been opposing this bridge since the last decade and a half and we will continue to oppose it tooth and nail,” he said.
In fact, the former Navelim MLA questioned whether the Navelim-Benaulim bridge has any relevance now in the wake of the Western bypass connecting Benaulim and Navelim.
