the goan I network
MAPUSA
Candolim villagers on Sunday demanded that fishermen from the village should be allowed to make use of the Sinquerim jetty as it comes under the jurisdiction of the Candolim panchayat.
Gram sabha members said that the people who were manning the Sinquerim jetty refused the Candolim fishing community use of the jetty for fishing activity.
“The jetty is in Candolim village. If local fishermen are not allowed to use the jetty then what sort of justice is this?” a gram sabha member questioned.
Sarpanch Blaize Fernandes assured the villagers that he will try to find a way out by speaking to the fisheries department.
“Since the jetty comes under the fisheries department I will take up the matter with the officials of the department,” Fernandes said.
The jetty is mainly used to conduct water sports activity but at times the fishing community also uses it.
Demanding action against handcart owners who do business in the area allotted for parking, locals said since no parking space was available for them and they were forced to park in no parking areas and many-a-times their two-wheelers were impounded by the authorities.
Raising the issue of pimps and touts who were openly operating along the Candolim coastal belt, locals said police were turning a blind eye to the menace.
“The panchayat should allow locals to monitor the area as volunteers and take action against such unscrupulous elements,” a local suggested.
The sarpanch said that he will have to examine the matter before taking any decision to appoint volunteers.
Some locals demanded an apology from the sarpanch for pointing fingers at them when they raised the issue of sex websites defaming the village of Candolim during the last gram sabha.
The sarpanch informed that he has taken up the matter of the websites with the cybercrime police and has also managed to block one of the websites.
“The panchayat will follow up the matter of the websites promoting Candolim and Goa as a sex tourism destination with the cybercrime and other appropriate authorities,” Fernandes said.
Locals also urged the
sarpanch to organise a
meeting with the police and the electricity department as the tourism season has kicked in.
“During the season we face a lot of law and order and power-related problems in the village. It’s important a meeting with the authorities is held at the earliest,” a member suggested.
