PANAJI
The Bombay High Court at Goa ordered the Margao Municipal Council and the South Goa Planning and Development Authority to scrupulously follow the decisions it has taken for the maintenance of cleanliness at the Margao wholesale fish market.
When the matter came up for hearing on Monday the Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB), filed its inspection report showing that unused thermocol boxes, as well as plastic and other garbage is still lying in and around the wholesale fish market at Margao.
The counsel for the Margao Municipality however, told the court that the entire area has been cleaned and all the unused thermocol boxes have been removed.
In order to verify the situation, the High Court ordered that a joint inspection consisting one officer each from the GSPCB, SGPDA and the Margao Municipal Council be carried out in the afternoon (Monday) to verify whether such boxes are still lying in the nearby rivulet/water body, as found by GSPCB.
“The report of such inspection shall be placed before this Court on or before the next date,” the High Court bench of Justices M S Sonak and Bharat Deshpande ruled.
Meanwhile the Margao Municipal Council told the court that the council took several decisions at a meeting called specially to discuss the lack of cleanliness at the Margao wholesale fish market.
At the meeting, it was decided that Council will undertake a drive to stop the illegal sale of retail fish at SGPDA wholesale fish market with the assistance of SGPDA team and the police and also keep a vigil thereafter. The meeting also decided to discuss on a daily basis how to maintain cleanliness at the market in terms of segregation of solid waste, disposal of solid waste and thermocol etc. in the wholesale fish market at Fatorda, Margao-Goa.
“It was decided that wholesale fish vendors shall keep the used thermocol and other dry waste at a designated place, which will be collected by Margao Municipal Council and thereafter dispose of the same on a daily basis. The representative of Wholesale Fish Market Association and SGPDA shall inform all the vendors doing wholesale business in SGPDA market regarding the above arrangement of MMC, Margao for disposal of dry waste and thermocol,” the council decided as revealed in the minutes placed before the Court.
The Council also decided on the issue of parking of trucks, that have finished their trip for the day and are parked alongside the main road, inquiring into the status of the non-functioning Sewerage Treatment Plant (STP) by contacting the company that installed it and checking in on the progress of the CCTV installation which is said to be still at the stage before the tenders are opened, employment of workers to clean the place, etc.
