Sancoale Dy Sarpanch Girish Pillai addresses the gram sabha on Sunday morning. Captured by : Vikram Nayak
VASCO
Sancoale gram sabha saw people discuss issues of garbage and new Panchayat Ghar. Dy Sarpanch Girish Pillai later said that works on new Panchayat Ghar would start by December and that the Panchayat would accept gram sabha proposal of setting up sopo for additional revenue.
Gramsabha member Mario Pereira raised the issue of garbage. "Sancoale is a beautiful village but garbage from Zuarinagar and Birla have been flowing down to Sancoale in the rains and the fields have become a garbage mall and totally contaminated. We have all kinds of medical waste, plastic and other garbage in our fields and we have informed the Sarpanch about the same. We have also pointed out that our lakes should not be only cleaned during Ganesh festival but steps need to be taken all around the year to keep it clean," said Pereira.
Former Sarpanch Premanand Naik said that despite having the support of Panchayats Minister, the works on the new Panchayat Ghar was far from being a reality.
"Former MLA Alina Saldanha was the MLA and Churchil Alemao had raised the question in the assembly of a panchayat Ghar in Benaulim when he was informed by Panchayats Minister Mauvin Godinho that the Government is offering rs 3.5 crores funds for new Panchayat Ghar. We now have land donated by Anand Bose worth Rs 67 lakhs and Government is offering funds and we have laid foundation stone for the new Panchayat Ghar on three occasions but nothing has happened. We are paying Rs 36,000 as rent per month for this rented premises for the last 18 months and it would be wise to take up the works on the new Panchayat Ghar, especially when the electricity department and Post office is in the old panchayat Ghar," said Naik.
"We have also questioned why Sancoale Panchayat does not have vehicles for garbage collection like other panchayats and why we don't have a sopo system to generate more revenue from people operating on the roadside like all other panchayats in Goa," added Naik.
