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THE GOAN NETWORK
VASCO: The Swatantra Path in Vasco has turned into a danger-prone zone, with weak roadside Ashoka trees falling down one after the other.
Barely two days after a weak Ashoka tree collapsed on Swatantra path and claimed the life of a motorcyclist in Vasco, yet another tree came crashing down on Sunday night near Axis Bank.
Fortunately, there was no casualty this time, as the incident had taken place at night when there was hardly any movement of motorists and pedestrians on the otherwise busy road.
“Had the tree collapsed during the day, there could have been casualties as a lot of people use the road and visit the bank for their daily transactions,” remarked a local.
Locals then alerted the fire and electricity department teams, who rushed to the site and cleared the tree.
Mormugao Councillor Krishna Daji Salkar, who rushed to the site on hearing the news, also coordinated with other agencies to clear the area and the road.
With two weak Ashoka trees collapsing within a gap of two days, locals are now concerned that some more weak trees could come crashing down, especially with the onset of monsoons and strong winds in the port town. They have demanded that the weak trees be cut before the famous Damodar Bhajani Saptah takes place in the area.
Speaking to reporters, MMC ward Councillor Krishna Salkar said he would submit yet another memorandum and contact the collector, Disaster Management Committee and Forest Department to demand immediate inspection and to take up the task of cutting all weak trees along the route.
"This area is becoming dangerous and these weak trees need to be cut on priority. We cannot afford to risk human life any more. While we will get the weak trees cut, we will plant new trees at the same location so that beautification of this road is not affected and we can also contribute towards our environment," said Salkar.
It may be recalled that a weak Ashoka tree had collapsed on Swatantra Path near Hotel La Paz early Saturday morning, killing a motorcyclist, Satish Gaonkar (41), on the spot.
