MARGAO
The two-wheeler-cum-footbridge connecting Margao to Pedda-Khareband has come under the scanner, with the bridge becoming a favourite spot for waste dumping by unscrupulous persons.
While garbage disposed of in plastic bags on the bridge is a common sight, the Margao Municipal Council may face a critical question: how has waste dumping on the two-wheeler-cum-footbridge escaped the attention of the waste collectors engaged by the civic body at a whopping Rs 6.5 crore annually?
For, the work order issued by the Margao Municipal Council not only mandates the contractors to collect waste door-to-door, but also to lift waste dumped at black spots and in open spaces.
Local residents of Pedda who visit the city via the two-wheeler-cum-footbridge say they often come across waste dumped on the bridge by unscrupulous elements. A senior citizen told The Goan that she had once hired a labourer to collect the waste dumped on the bridge.
“Why is the Margao Municipal Council not collecting the waste dumped on the bridge? Is it not its responsibility to lift the waste disposed of on the bridge?” she demanded to know.
Sources in the know told The Goan that the Margao Municipal Council cannot abdicate its responsibility to clear the waste dumped on the bridge since the civic body is spending crores of rupees on garbage collection.
“If the agreement mandates the waste collectors to collect waste also from black spots, the MMC officials should enforce the agreement. We only find the civic body showering praises on the garbage collection contractors for carrying out good work, but the body has hardly enforced the agreement entered into with the contractors,” sources in the know said.
