MAPUSA
With no response from government authorities, the villagers of Saipem have now decided to take matters in their hands and sent water samples of five wells in the village to a private laboratory for chemical analysis.
The locals under the Saipem Villagers Anti-Pollution Front (SVAPF) are also contemplating to knock the doors of the court to ensure that the Berger Becker paint company does not start its operations in the same place.
“Almost a fortnight back, the chief minister had directed the Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB) and the Water Resources Department (WRD) to inspect and clean the water of the contaminated wells in the village but till today nothing has happened. We have sent water samples of five contaminated wells to a private laboratory for chemical analysis. We are waiting for the report,” said Assis Cardozo, Convenor of SVAPF.
He said there was apprehension among the villagers on test reports submitted by the GSPCB and therefore it was decided to have an independent analysis of the contaminated well water.
Nearly a month back, a massive fire engulfed a warehouse of the Berger Becker Coatings Pvt Ltd located at the Pilerne Industrial Estate causing panic among the Saipem villagers, which is located just 100 metres away from the company.
Within four days after the fire incident, the villagers were struck with another calamity after the water in the wells in the village was found to be contaminated.
“The government had directed the GSPCB to collect and test the samples of contaminated well water in the village. But what happened after that we are not aware. The need of the hour is to form an expert committee to check the level of contamination. There is also a need to carry out soil testing in the area,” said Amol Navelkar, a resident of the village.
Last month, Environment Minister Nilesh Cabral had informed the Goa Legislative Assembly that the Department of Environment and Climate Change with the GSPCB was monitoring the water quality of the Saipem Lake and three wells around Saipem vaddo of Candolim.
He said the analysis report indicated that presence of Nickel ranged from 0.05 mg/l to 0.17 mg/l which exceeds the permissible limit of 0.02 mg/l while Copper presence ranged from 0.08 mg/l to 0.18 mg/l which exceeds the permissible limit of 0.05 mg/l. Similarly, presence of Iron was within the range of 0.79 mg/l to 2.24 mg/l which exceeds the permissible limit of 0.3 mg/l in the wells.
Cabral also informed that people of the village were told not to consume the water of the wells around Saipem till further notice and that the Environment Department along with GSPCB will continue with the weekly sampling of the well water and review the reports.
Ex-headmaster and a resident of Saipem, John Fernandes said besides the contaminated well water, villagers still experienced obnoxious smell from the area at certain times depending on the pattern of the wind.
“We are going to fight this till the end. We are not going to let the company start its manufacturing unit there again,” Fernandes said.
