Cavelossim panchayat issues show cause notices, seeks reply within 7 days; notice cites fishing units carrying out unhygienic activities causing health hazard in surrounding areas
MARGAO
The Cavelossim village panchayat on Thursday issued show cause notices to two fishing units operating at Mobor in the wake of the outbreak of diarrhea/cholera amongst migrant labourers engaged on the fishing vessels.
The show cause notices by the Cavelossim village panchayat comes a day after Deputy Collector, Margao, Ganesh Barve held a high-level meeting of the stakeholders to take stock of the dengue and diarrhea cases reported at the Cutbona fishing jetty and at Mobor.
The show cause notices issued by Cavelossim Sarpanch Dixon Vaz also comes against the backdrop of the inspection carried out by the panchayat earlier this week at the fishing facility operated by Silva fisheries and Joecons fisheries.
Saying the outbreak of acute gastroenteritis leading to severe dehydration amongst the boat workers can spread more widely in the entire village, the sarpanch, in separate notices issued to the two fishing units, has directed them to show cause why action should not be initiated against them and their activities and also all the labourers who are engaged in the fishing-trawler business.
The sarpanch has contemplated action under the Goa Panchayat Raj Act, 1994 if they fail to comply within seven days from the date of receipt of this notice.
“This is to bring to your kind attention that according to the reports prepared by the health officials that this office is awfully concerned about the rise in acute gastroenteritis cases leading to severe dehydration amongst your boat-workers at Mobor. Poor personal hygiene, overcrowding and late reporting of the symptoms by those affected have resulted in aggravating the issue,” the notice said.
Saying that the Village Panchayat of Cavelossim had carried out suo-moto site inspection on September 3, 2024, the sarpanch stated in the show cause notice that the units were carrying out unhygienic activities causing nuisance in the surrounding areas.
“You have not provided adequate and hygienic sanitary facilities to the labourers thus violating all the health norms leading to outbreak in acute gastroenteritis cases (cholera) and severe dehydration amongst your boat-workers,” the inspection report stated.
That’s not all. The panchayat further pointed out that the units have not maintained database of health status of labourers engaged on the boats and the acute gastroenteritis cases.
Dixon stated that the panchayat has issued the show cause notices on health grounds in the light of the high-level meeting called by the Deputy Collector, Margao on Wednesday.
