Over thousand residents march in protest against proposed Bainguinim waste plant

the goan I network

OLD GOA   

Upping the ante against the proposed Bainguinim waste plant, over thousand locals took out a silent morcha opposing the plant, yesterday.   

Historian Prajal Sakhardande, Fr Maverick Fernandes, Fr Savio Dias, Cumbarjua MLA Pandurang Madkaikar, Old Goa sarpanch Janita Madkaikar, Carambolim sarpanch Uttam Murgaonkar, deputy sarpanch Menino Cardozo, Old Goa panchas, nuns, Jagduru Narendracharyaji Maharaj Sanstan’s representatives, and a large number of locals from Old Goa and neighbouring villages participated in the protest.   

Speaking at the meeting which was organized as part of the protest, historian Prajal Sakhardande expressed fears that Old Goa monuments could lose UNESCO status if the garbage treatment plant comes up in close vicinity of the heritage sites.   

“There is a possibility of Old Goa monuments losing the UNESCO status if the plant is allowed to come up here,” Sakhardande stated while urging the locals to stand united till the plant is booted out. “As per rules of UNESCO, nothing can come up within close vicinity of world heritage sites and definitely not a garbage plant,” Sakhardande informed.   

“The site is a rich heritage as well as biodiversity area with historic fort wall located there as well as fort arch wall. The Raja Soundekar’s palace is also located in its vicinity. The Kadamba road is a historic road built in the 11th century and some part of it passes through the plant,” he pointed out while adding that the place is also a religiously sanctified place. Fr Savio Dias decried that the plant is sought to be put up in a sensitive area where there is heritage, settlements, schools, religious institutions, churches, mutt, hospital, etc.   

“It’s an eco-sensitive area which functions as a catchment area and the plant will have a bad effect on the environment,” he added.“The existing plants in Goa, at Saligao and Sonsodo, are not functioning properly and the unbearable stink can be smelt even upto 3 kms away,” Fr Dias stated while expressing fear that the same thing will be repeated in Bainguinim if the plant is allowed to be set up.   

Fr Dias also said that under central government notification a garbage plant cannot be allowed to be set up near heritage sites and urged the government to focus on decentralized system of treating garbage rather than a centralized one.   

Former Old Goa sarpanch and current panch Nilkanth Bhomkar pleaded with the government to treat the locals of Old Goa as humans and not animals. “We are also humans and not animals. Even animals have been given protection, then why not us?” he posed.“Old Goa is a holy place and it should not be converted into a garbage place,” he stated.   

Old Goa sarpanch Janita Madkaikar, panch Vishwas Kuttikar, Pornnem Goencho Nagrik Manch president Ambar Amonkar, mutt representative Prabhakar Nasnodkar, Sameel Volvoikar, Nilesh Salgaonkar representing Salgaonkar group, Mariano Ferrao, environmentalist Seby Rodrigues, activist Rama Kankonkar, and others spoke on the occasion.