MARGAO
As the Central Pollution Control Board’s revelation on the high presence of faecal coliform in the sea off Goa coast, has shed light on the water contamination along the beach belt, government agencies may have to answer the same old question “ when will the government commission the Colva Sewage Treatment Plant (STP) set up to treat sewage generated in the tourist village?
Well, PWD Minister, Nilesh Cabral, who also holds the Environment portfolio, sounded categorical in saying the STP plant set up at Colva is ready in all respects. He too knows for sure that the plant, however, may not be of much use if it does not receive sewage from the commercial establishments and housing societies dotting the coastal village.
Inquiries by The Goan has revealed that the Colva STP is ready for commissioning, but sewage is yet to flow into the state-of-the-art plant till date.
Otherwise, consider this. The Sewerage Infrastructure Development Corporation of Goa Ltd (SIDCGL) has laid a network of underground sewage lines across Colva village as part of the multi-crore project.
As part of the project, Colva is bifurcated into four zones “ of which one zone, which covers the area playing host to hotels and restaurants dotting the tourist villages, is ready for commissioning.
There’s, however, a problem staring at the PWD authorities “ how to get the stakeholders, including the hotels and restaurant owners obtain the sewerage connections for their premises.
Inquiries have further revealed that the PWD had kept the forms for sewerage connection at the Colva village panchayat for the hotels and household owners to apply for the connections. Sadly, many forms were taken by the stakeholders, hardly any forms were returned applying for the connections.
Given the situation, Colva Sarpanch Suzie Fernandes informed that the PWD will now have a direct interaction with the hotel and household owners to apply for the connections.
That’s not all. The remaining three sewage zones are facing different issues “ land to set up pumping stations. Conceding that the interaction with the stakeholders to make available land to set up the pumping stations have not met with success, PWD Minister Nilesh Cabral said the PWD would now approach the district Collector, South to resolve the land issues. “The three zones cannot be made operational unless the pumping stations are installed. We are approaching the district Collector, to settle the land issues to pave way for the pumping stations,” he said.
As far as the remaining fourth zone is concerned, Cabral said the STP can be made operational if the plant receives the sewage from this zone. He, however conceded that unless the restaurant and hotel owners and households cooperate and apply for the connections, it will take some time to operate the plant.
In this context, questions are being raised whether the Tourism Department will play its role in getting all the hotels and restaurants operating in the tourist village to apply and get the premises connected to the sewage zone.
