Downpour awaited, but flood-prone route already submerged in water
Pre-monsoon showers inundate low-lying areas along Benaulim-Seraulim-Mungul
MARGAO
For, monsoons have not set in Goa as yet officially if ones goes by the local metrology office, but the low-lying areas on both sides of the Mungul road play host to water accumulation. That’s not all. The River Sal is not overflowing yet, but the vast tracts of low- lying fields, that have acted as a catchment area for rain water over the decades, are already submerged under water, indicating that these fields act as a basin for rain water flowing down from the villages of Betalbatim, Seraulim, Colva, besides Mungul and Nuvem as claimed by local villagers.
The ground reality tallies with the findings of the high-level panel headed by then Margao deputy Collector, Sanjit Rodrigues, who in his report submitted to the district administration in 2001-02, had called for a re-think on the construction of the western bypass along the Benaulim-Seraulim-Mungul stretch on grounds the fields constitute the wet lands and the catchment areas for the rain water.
When The Goan called up a PWD official, NH-17 executing the Margao Western bypass through the water catchment areas of the Mungul-Margao-Benaulim belt to find out whether they have inspected the low-lying areas after the torrential rains, he admitted the rain water has inundated the fields.
Local residents of Mungul told The Goan that water accumulation in the fields seen now is just a tip of the ice berg, adding that the fields will be full to the brim once the skies open and the monsoons sets in.
A closer look at River Sal revealed that though the river is flowing in full spate, water has still overflowed into the adjoining low-lying areas.
Local residents of Mungul, Seraulim, Nuvem and Benaulim had been opposing the construction of the western bypass through land filling, demanding that the proposed bypass be built on stilts to avert a disaster. The residents along with Benaulim MLA Caitu Silva have been demanding construction of the bypass on stilts along the vulnerable stretch spanning from Khareband bridge to the Seraulim-Mungul area. Though land filling for the construction of the earthen embankments had started along the bypass, work could not take off along the Benaulim and Seraulim stretch following strong objections from the local populace.
Sources in the PWD informed that work will now resume only in the month of September-October after the water from the catchment areas drains completely.
