Most of households, business establishments yet to take connections
The 5MLD Colva Sewerage Treatment plant.
MARGAO
As the Sewerage Infrastructure Development Corporation of Goa Ltd (SIDCGL) is bracing up to hand over the 7.5MLD Colva Sewerage plant to the Public Works Department (PWD) for maintenance, the government and the powers that be may have to grapple with a simple question – have the authorities initiated adequate steps to ensure steady supply of sewage from the business establishments and households doting the tourist village to the sewage plant for treatment?
For, fears have been expressed in certain quarters that the sewage treatment plant may not only turn into a white elephant for want of sewage, but the very purpose of setting up the ambitious sewage project in the tourist village will be defeated if sewage from the households and commercial establishments does not flow into the STP.
Inquiries by The Goan with the SIDCGL have revealed that the Corporation will release connections to the households, while the task of issuing sewage connections to the commercial establishments is entrusted to the PWD, Sewerage.
If SIDCGL officials are to be believed, the Corporation has received around 15-20 applications from households for release of sewage connections till date. PWD, Sewerage officials at Margao too admitted having received couple of applications from commercial establishments for sewage connections.
The moot question, however, remains unanswered – how would SIDCGL or the PWD, Sewerage go about the job of convincing the owners of commercial establishments as well as the households to go for the sewage connections. For, officials feared that the 7.5MLD Colva sewerage plant may remain underutilized in the event commercial establishments and households fail to take the connections.
A SIDCGL official told The Goan that officials had in the past conducted awareness campaign in Colva village. “We had participated in the gram sabha meetings in order to convince the people to go for the sewage connections. Forms were also left at the Colva Panchayat office to facilitate the households to apply for the connections”, remarked a SIDCGL official.
Sources pointed out that hotels and commercial establishments along the beach side may all go for the sewage connections given that the Goa State Pollution Control Board had in the recent past issued notices to these units. Hoteliers, however, lamented that many a hotel and commercial establishment is ready and willing to take the sewerage connections, but the authorities didn't seem to be in any haste to release the sewage connections.
