MAPUSA
The ongoing infrastructure works undertaken bythe Goa State Infrastructure Development Corporation (GSIDC) have raised safetyconcerns in Candolim following two incidents in which people fell into opentrenches, one of them proving fatal.
The concern has grown after a person diedafter falling onto exposed iron rods at a work site in neighbouring Calangute,while a couple on a two-wheeler fell into an open trench in another incidentand escaped with injuries.
Against this backdrop, Candolim locals, at arecent meeting, have demanded that adequate safety measures be implemented atall GSIDC work sites in the village. They pointed out that the open trenchespose a danger to motorists and pedestrians, particularly when work areas wereleft inadequately secured. With infrastructure projects running through busyareas frequented by residents and tourists, the absence of proper barricading,warning signs and other safety measures can turn construction zones intoaccident-prone stretches.
Sarpanch Blaize Fernandes assured thevillagers that he would write to the GSIDC chairman, urging the corporation toensure all necessary safety measures at its work sites.
The meeting also discussed other civicconcerns, including open dumping of garbage, hotels discharging wastewater ontoroads and unauthorised constructions.
Villagers further sought intervention by thetraffic police to restrict vehicle speeds on village roads to 30 kmph, citingthe risk of accidents caused by speeding tourist vehicles.
Water scarcity was another concern, withresidents apprehensive about the impact of deficient rainfall this year and thepossibility of cuts in supply by the Public Works Department. They proposed acomprehensive audit of all wells, springs and ponds in the village, along withtheir cleaning and upkeep, so that these sources could be used duringemergencies.
However, the immediate concern for villagersremains the safety of people moving through areas where infrastructure worksare under way, with demands for preventive measures before another accidentoccurs.
