Saturday 25 Jan 2025

Redeveloped Margao’s wholesale fish market raises environmental concerns

Market lacks effluent treatment plant; status of natural treatment mechanism set up by BITS Pilani unclear; black-coloured leachate observed flowing from market into drains, River Sal

GUILHERME ALMEIDA | JANUARY 25, 2025, 01:27 AM IST

The mechanism set up by BITS Pilani to treat waste water at the wholesale fish market is craving for attention. In the absence of any mechanism, leachate and waste water finds its way into the River Sal.

Photo Credits: Santosh Mirajkar


MARGAO
As the stage is set for the commissioning of the redeveloped wholesale fish market at Margao, the government and the SGPDA will have to answer a simple question or two – will the modern market ring in good news for River Sal, which had to face the brunt of leachate and effluents discharged from the market, contaminating the river water?

Or will the untreated market water stop flowing into the River Sal and will there be a turnaround with the commissioning of the new market complex?

Well, inquiries have revealed that the wholesale fish market project executed by the Goa Infrastructure Development Corporation (GSIDC) on behalf of the project proponent, Fisheries Department, has no provision for an Effluent Treatment Plant (ETP) in the scheme of things.

A senior GSIDC official informed that an ETP was not factored in the project since BITS Pilani had set up a mechanism in the wholesale fish market over half a decade ago to treat the effluents in a natural way before the water finds its way into the River Sal.

Inquiries have further revealed that the GSIDC has built a 70,000 litre septic/ collection tank in the market complex for the accumulation of the waste water generated in the market as a matter of abundant caution as the agency expects the SGPDA to revive the system put in place by BITS Pilani for the treatment of the waste water and leachate.

This will bring to the fore another moot question – is the BITS Pilani still looking after the upkeep and maintenance of the system to treat the untreated water or has the institute withdrawn from operating the  system for want of support and cooperation from the authorities.

Technically speaking, the GSIDC may be correct that the wholesale fish market has a system in place for the treatment of waste water generated in the market. But, is the system functional and in operation and will the mechanism be able to treat the waste water when the market is finally commissioned at the hand of Chief Minister Pramod Sawant.

Or, will it be the same old story in the new market complex that thousands of litres of untreated waste water generated in the wholesale fish market will find its way in the adjoining River Sal, polluting the water body?

SGPDA officials were not available for comment on the status of the mechanism to treat leachate and waste water generated in the wholesale fish market. GSIDC officials, however, insist that the PDA should revive the BITS Pilani waste treatment project to take care of the leachate/ waste water.

A visit to the wholesale fish market has revealed that black colour leachate is flowing from the market into the storm water drains before finding its way into the River Sal. In fact, in the absence of any full-fledged treatment mechanism, leachate and waste water generated in the wholesale fish has been flowing into the River Sal. The issue over the leachate finding its way into the River Sal had in the recent past come under the scanner of the High Court, but a permanent solution seemed not forthcoming till date.


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