the goan I network
PANAJI
The Bombay High Court at Goa has directed village panchayats to send only segregated waste to the Saligao Waste Treatment Plant and ruled that if any panchayat failed to do so it will not be allowed to avail the facilities at the plant.
Concerning Saligao, the court directed that it shall be imperative for the village panchayats, including, in particular, the coastal VPs, to send only segregated waste to the landfill sites or Saligao waste disposal plant facility.
“It is made clear that the Goa State Waste Management Corporation will have to keep a proper record of segregation of waste coming to the Saligao plant from different local bodies. It is made clear that if unsegregated waste is sent by any local body to Saligao plant, the facility of accepting its waste in the plant shall be withdrawn,” the High Court said.
“It is also made clear that increased capacity of Saligao plant shall be made available for only those VPs, municipal councils and corporation, who send segregated waste to the plant. Since augmentation of the capacity is presently in progress, detailed directions in this behalf shall be considered later and such directions shall then be made part of the Court order in this behalf,” the court said.
The court was informed that after Saligao plant was set up and disposal of waste generated by 27 coastal VPs of North Goa was entrusted to it, these panchayats have simply abrogated their responsibilities to deal with waste in accordance with law and instead have been sending whatever they collect, either in segregated or unsegregated form, to Saligao plant.
“The plant is practically treated as a garbage dumping plant. It is imperative that waste should be sent to the plant only in segregated form,” the court said.
The Advocate General also accepted that in many cases, waste was being transported to the plant in unsegregated form.
He, however, told the court that for the present, things are under control and about 80% waste comes in segregated form.
The High Court which has been monitoring the garbage issue in the state, expressed its unhappiness that despite there being so many laws and directions by various courts since 1990, the situation of garbage remains as grim as ever.
“One would have expected that with all this legislation and orders passed by this court as well as the National Green Tribunal from time to time, waste disposal in the State of Goa would be accomplished in a proper and efficacious manner redressing grievances of citizens of the State,” the High Court Bench of Justices Nutan Sardesai and S C Gupte said.
The court said that the key area having a critical bearing on any scheme of waste disposal, whether ordered by the Court or provided by statute, is the issue of implementation. Implementation, in turn, would depend on three keys factors.
“The first is monitoring of scheme. It is absolutely imperative that adequate measures are put in place to see that there is robust monitoring of garbage disposal scheme. It is secondly imperative that responsibilities must be fixed and people be made accountable. Thirdly, it is necessary to provide for penalties and, if possible, an effective regime of rewards and punishments. Effective implementation of any scheme at the local level ought to be rewarded, whereas its violation must be punished,” the court said.
Concerning the other garbage treatment plants, the High Court directed the expediting of setting up other plants.
“The State shall complete all statutory formalities, tendering of work and erection and commissioning of the capacity of Saligao plant to its fullest, namely, 250 TPD (+20%), within a period of 16 months from today. The other three solid management facilities proposed at Cacora, Bainguinim and Verna, which are at various stages of implementation, including awaiting technical sanction and appointment of management consultant, etc. shall be completed by the State Government within a period of 28 months from today,” the High Court ruled.
