Civic body not enforcing clause mandating contractors to lift away waste from open spaces
The entrance to the agriculture office-Station road railway footbridge has become a favourite waste dumping spot.
Photo Credits: Santosh Mirajkar
MARGAO
Swachhata reverberated across the country on Monday as citizens, organizations besides government bodies all joined hands for an hour on Sunday to keep their surroundings clean and free from litter.
The commercial capital too joined the rest of the state and the country with cleanliness drives across the Municipal area.
The Margao City Fathers, the Municipal babus and the powers that be controlling the civic body, however, have a question or two to answer – has the civic body achieved the goal of maintaining the city clean, free from waste and litter when the Municipality spends a whopping Rs 5 crore annually on private waste collection contractors, besides employing an army of garbage workers and sweepers?
For, while the attention is all focused on Sonsodo waste treatment imbroglio, waste collection, especially at the open spaces and black spots has been craving for attention.
The City Fathers as well as the babus may be quick to point out that employing private contractors has helped streamline door-to-door waste collection. But, how about the mini-waste mounds taking shape across the commercial capital? And, the black spots dotting the city, which have become eyesores, for want of action by the Municipal body?
Questions are being further raised in the corridors of the Margao civic body whether the agreement inked with the private waste collectors restricts the job of the contractors to collection of waste from the doorsteps of the households or are they duty bound to lift away waste from the open spaces as well? If the answer is in the affirmative, why has the civic body not enforced the clause mandating the waste contractors to also lift away waste other than waste from the households and establishments?
Otherwise, consider this: A ride down the commercial capital would reveal that many an open space has turned into waste dumping spots. Blame it on the waste finding its way from the neighbouring villages bordering the commercial capital or otherwise, waste collection is still a far cry at many places, throwing up questions whether the civic body is zeroing in on waste collection only from the households and leaving the black spots unattended.
Railway footbridge: The entrance to the railway footbridge, starting from the Agriculture office, Calconda, connecting the city’s station road is a case in point. The area resembles a garbage dump, with plastic and dry waste dumped at the spot with impunity. In fact, pedestrians and locals term the place as a Sonsodo in the making, with the area playing host to waste 24x7. This has thrown up a question for the Margao Municipality to answer – who is mandated to clear the waste from the site, whether the private waste contractors or the army of garbage workers employed by the civic body?
City Fathers and babus may say the waste dumped at the site comes from the neighbourign villages, but in the absence of a mechanism to stop outside waste from finding its way into city, can the civic body abdicate its responsibility to lift away and dispose of the waste?
Cine Lata Footbridge: The Cine Lata footbridge is another case in point. Pedestrians and riders using the footbridge come across a mound of waste dumped under the bridge. Blame it on the local residents or otherwise, waste is often found dumped under the bridge, throwing up the same old question – whose responsibility is it to dispose of the waste dumped under the bridge.
Incidentally, a board near the Pedda railway footbridge welcomed residents on Sunday with a message that Swacchata will be carried out along the Khareband railway tracks. Whether the area below the Cine Lata railway footbridge along the railway tracks will also be taken under the Swacchata programme remains unknown.
Margao flyover: It’s not uncommon to find waste, especially dry waste dumped at the starting point of the Margao flyover round the year. That the area is not attended to by the private garbage contractors roped in by the civic body for waste collection is evident by the fact that a waste mound is in the making at the site.
Comba ring road: South Goa district Collector had last year ordered the closure of the Aquem ring road for vehicular traffic late evenings with a one-point programme – to stop miscreants from dumping waste along the ring road.
The Collector had apparently issued the order upon a request from Margao MLA Digambar Kamat and Margao Municipal Chairperson Damu Shirodkar as the Aquem ring road had turned into an eyesore.
Welcome to the Comba ring road, starting from the Comba subway before it joins the Margao-Colva road at the Old market. The entire stretch of the ring road has become a favourite waste dumping destination for want of action by the law enforcing agencies. The ring road was patrolled by the MMC officials for a couple of days over a month when the High Court had maintained the heat on the civic body on Sonsodo.
Things, however, seemed to have returned back to normal with the ring road strewn with litter and waste.
