All’s not well at Mobor, inspection at fish landing reveals poor working conditions

The Cavelossim Sarpanch further pointed out that the Labour Department should take cognisance of the living conditions of the fishing crew members brought by the boat owners to work on the fishing vessels.

Taking cognizance of media reports about the outbreak of cholera/diarrhea at Mobor, the Cavelossim Sarpanch first called on the Chinchinim Health Officer Dr Nixon Fernandes to take stock of the situation.

After the meeting, the Sarpanch conducted a surprise inspection of both the jetties at Mobor along with Panchayat Secretary, VDC members, Cavelossim Village Forum Secretary Prince Pereira and Biodiversity Committee Chairman Roy Baretto and panch members.

During the inspection, the team found out that sanitation has been very poor and not maintained properly. “We will initiate strict action on both the boat owners as there were lot of activities taking place which are damaging the environment and most of the labourers are working in very bad condition. This might have led to the outbreak of cholera amongst the workers. We will send a notice to both the jetty operators why action should not been taken against them,” Dixon said.

Reminding that Mobor and Cavelossim are on the tourist map of the world, he said the outbreak of cholera does not augur well for a tourist hub. “Those who are running the jetties at Mobor should take care of their workers. These workers are also human beings. The Labour Department should take cognisance of their plight,” Dixon added.

Cavelossim Villagers Forum Secretary Prince Pereira requested the sarpanch to send notices to the boat owners, saying the workers are answering the nature’s call on the beach.

Chairman of Cavelossim Bio-Diversity Committee, Roy Barretto lamented that no sanitation provision has been made at the Mobor fish landing jetties for the hundreds of workers employed on the fishing boats. “The authorities should immediately find out the drinking water provision made for the labourers or whether the water is being pumped from the ground,” Roy said, while demanding that the Cavelossim Sarpanch immediately issue notices to the boat owners.

Has South Goa Collector ordered mandatory database for migrant workers?

MARGAO: Has the South Goa District Collector issued any directions to boat owners to maintain a mandatory database of the names of labourers engaged on each boat in the fishing-trawler business?

This was the request made by the Health officer heading the Chinchinim health centre, Dr Nixon Fernandes in a letter made to the district Collector on August 26.

In the letter to the district Collector, Dr Nixon had stated that one death has also been reported, adding that poor personal hygiene, overcrowding and late reporting of the symptoms have resulted in aggravating the issue.

Since the outbreak can spread more widely, Dr Nixon had requested the District Administration to direct all who are engaged in the fishing-trawler business to cooperate with the Health Department for collection of stool, water and any other samples from the boats as well as from the jetty.

He had also urged the district Collector to direct all the boat owners to mandatorily maintain a database of the names of the labourers engaged on each boat as well as the names of the workers who report sick or take treatment at any government or private health facility.

Questions, however, have been raised whether any directions from the district Collectorate have gone to the boat owners till date.

Meet at South Goa Collectorate to discuss health crisis at Cutbona today