MARGAO
With no solution forthcoming from the authorities concerned, the Aam Aadmi Party on Saturday launched what it called “Operation Digaband” to raise consciousness of Goans on the mass destruction of biodiversity, including wetlands, rivers, hills and agricultural and orchard lands.
Digaband has been in the news in recent times with animal waste and chemicals finding its way into the Sal rivulet at Chinchinim bordering Sirlim village.
District authorities have washed their hands off the issue when Chinchinim panchayat called for intervention under Swachh Bharat Abhiyan saying the issue falls in the domain of the Panchayat Director.
Led by AAP State Convenor Elvis Gomes, the party volunteers assembled at the highly contaminated age-old water body on the occasion of World Wetlands Day.
Elvis directed his tirade at the government, saying it has become “lifeless’ and hence unable to act in the prevention of pollution of water bodies like the one at Digaband.
He said that an alert government would have been responsive to the complaint under section 133 of the Cr PC filed with the District Magistrate, which was not the case in Goa. “The protest is symbolic as it brings into focus the need to save the age-old water bodies which are bearing the brunt of greed and insensitivity,” he added.
He called upon Goans to launch ‘Operation Digaband’ in their respective villages and towns to save the wetlands. “I can give in writing that the days of Goans are numbered. The destruction of water bodies is an invitation to doomsday. Remedial measures have to be initiated. We need to be more sensitive to the needs of our posterity,” he stated.
He highlighted how farmers in Verna were struggling for past so many years for government assistance to restore their ponds and wells.
Elvis also condemned the revised Taleigao ODP that had proposed roads cutting through agricultural fields and vowed to be part of the struggle to save biodiversity of Goa.
AAP leader Sidharth Karapurkar explained the importance of wetlands in the ecosystem. Velim constituency coordinator Gavi Coutinho stated that an analysis of the water sample of Digaband showed very high level of pollution with heavy concentration of bacteria and heavy metals such as lead.
Meanwhile, earlier in the morning, an AAP delegation met State Biodiversity Board MD Pradeep Sarmakodam and highlighted the state of Digaband and demanded action and also highlighted that the Chinchinim VP had not maintained any biodiversity register.
