MARGAO
Seven-time Margao MLA Digambar Kamat joined his Benaulim counterpart Venzy Viegas and others on World Environment Day to take a pledge to save River Sal and restore the river to its pristine glory.
While the Save River Sal mission may take some time to bring the desired change, Kamat has an immediate task at hand “ to get the Margao Municipal Council controlled by him and Goa Forward chief Vijai Sardesai and lift away hundreds of tonnes of plastic waste dumped along the Comba ring road, which threatens to flow into the river Sal in the ensuing monsoons. The MMC ruled by the Kamat-Sardesai controlled Margao Civic Alliance (MCA) has turned a blind eye to the hundreds of tonnes of plastic waste dumped all along the Comba ring road, passing through the constituencies of Margao and Fatorda.
The Margao MLA also has a bigger task at hand “ how to get the business community and residential societies in his home constituency Margao connect their establishments and houses to the underground sewerage line. For, raw sewage coming from Margao and neighbouring Fatorda is cited as the prime reason behind the contamination of river Sal.
While work on the underground sewage line is almost complete in Kamat’s Margao constituency, the entire area is still not connected to the two state-of-the-art sewage treatment plants at Sirvodem-Margao as a result of which raw sewage flows into the river Sal from the city, contaminating the river.
After taking the pledge to save river Sal, the Margao MLA said his Benaulim counterpart has taken up an important issue on World Environment Day to save the river and restore the river to its past glory.
“The river has deteriorated. The pledge we take today to improve the river will help restore the river to its glory. People living on the river banks should stop dumping in the river. Many issues will be solved if people stop dumping waste in the river,” he said
In his address, Benaulim MLA Venzy said he and the Margao MLA have come to take a pledge to save river Sal, to do everything in their means to plug contamination of the river.
“This is the first step from our side on World Environment Day. We have de-silted our water bodies. Let us leave behind the past and move forward to save the river,” Venzy added.
Environmentalist blames real estate, business activities for state of river
MARGAO:
Social activist and environmentalist Abhijit Prabhudesai, who descended on the river Sal on Sunday, attributed the sorry state of the river Sal to the uncontrolled real estate and the business activities.
“Real estate has to stop since Earth is not something which is for business, but has to be regarded as mother,” he said, as he blamed the garbage plants and sewage plants polluting the river Sal.
“Men are part of the environment. We are close to the river Sal. We have to all understand that we are part of the Earth. But, because of our greed, we have brought real estate and industries and also garbage and pollution units which have discharged effluents in the river leaving Sal polluted,” he said.
Abhijit added: “If we are all concerned about preserving river Sal, we have to lay stress on agriculture and its development. Real estate has to stop, Earth is not business, but has to be considered as our Mother”.
