MARGAO
The western bypass issue has come back to haunt citizens as the monsoon is finally set to hit the State, but a flooding report compiled by the Water Resources Department (WRD) after last year’s unprecedented flooding at Benaulim has thrown up a simple question – why did the Centre, or the PWD or the Goa government not take cognisance of the WRD official report on the 2022 flooding in Benaulim and adjoining villages?
For, the report compiled by WRD Assistant Engineer Sainath Jamakhandi was categorical in concluding that there is a high possibility of flood waters rising at a magnified level in the future if the bypass is constructed on embankment filling for the remaining stretch in Benaulim, from Mungul Railway line till the Khareband-Varca road.
That’s not all. Jamakhandi further stated in his report that the possibility of disaster to the life, livelihood and property of the local inhabitants in the future needs to be considered before going ahead with the construction of the bypass on the embankment along the Benaulim stretch.
A year down the line, questions are being raised about whether observations made by the WRD official on the 2022 flooding in Benaulim were not sufficient for the PWD and WRD officials and the Goa government or the Centre to intervene and build the bypass passing through the flood plains of Benaulim on stilts.
Post-2022 monsoons, PWD Minister Nilesh Cabral inspected the stretch of the bypass passing through Benaulim. Instead of recommending the bypass on stilts, the PWD Minister gave a signal to increase the number of culverts along the Tolleaband water body, which acts as a water catchment area during the monsoons.
On the other hand, officials of the PWD, National Highway, executing the bypass on stilts, refused to stop work on the bypass through the Benaulim stretch on the premise the PWD is executing the project based on the directions of the High Court, monitoring the bypass project in the 2015 Public Interest Litigation (PIL).
As another monsoon is set to hit the State, a host of questions remain unanswered. One, who exactly was responsible for brushing the WRD report under the carpet when it had warned of future flooding if the bypass is not built on stilts?
Secondly, the flooding report recommended a model study by the WRD on the flooding at Benaulim. Will WRD Chief Engineer Badami explain the status of the study recommended in the 2022 flooding report with an expert hydrologist to avoid the worst circumstances in future that may occur on account of development along the bank of River Sal? Or, whether the recommendation made by then WRD Executive Engineer Ankush Gaonkar was also rejected for reasons best known to the Chief Engineer?
That’s not all. In a previous 2019 report, the WRD had warned that construction of the western bypass without stilts will result in the inundation of the flood plains of river Sal.
The WRD had in its report compiled in 2019 taken a clear stand that the bypass should be built on stilts considering the long-term damage to agricultural land and bio-diversity. Sadly, the report was not only ignored by senior WRD officials but by the government as well.
Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, PWD Minister and WRD Minister had all inspected the alignment of the bypass post-2022 monsoons on an invitation from local MLA Venzy Viegas, throwing up a moot question – were these ministers not convinced by the WRD report or whether they simply preferred to ignore it given that construction on stilts would involve additional cost to the tune of over Rs 80-100 crore?
Monsoon, HC hearing, Gadkari's assurance puts bypass in focus
MARGAO:
The ensuing monsoon, the High Court hearing on the bypass scheduled on June 19 and Union Surface Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari’s promise to depute an expert to inspect the bypass alignment have brought the focus back on the controversial western bypass.
The fate of the bypass passing through Benaulim now hangs in balance. While work on landfilling is expected to slow down during the monsoons, all eyes are on the hearing of the application filed by the Benaulim panchayat seeking intervention in the PIL suo moto petition on the bypass issue scheduled on June 19.
Gadkari’s promise to Goa Forward chief Vijai Sardesai to send an expert to study the bypass issue has raised hopes that the Centre may agree to part construction of the bypass through Benaulim, especially on the stretch along the Tolleaband water body.
The Benaulim panchayat had filed the application in the PIL suo moto before the High Court based on a report compiled by an agency on the flooding pattern in Benaulim and the adjoining villages.
Sardesai said there is hope that Gadkari will sanction funds to build the bypass on stilts passing through Benaulim.
“The Minister has promised to send an expert to Goa during or after the monsoon to study the matter. The Minister is not averse to sanctioning funds to build the bypass on stilts in the problematic stretch, but a decision to this effect would come after the inspection by the expert from the Union Surface Transport Ministry,” he said.
