LOCALS ON THE EDGE
* Those who owned a fleet of trucks have now run out of business
* Truck drivers are worst affected; most have flown abroad for jobs
* With no mining activities, many doing menial jobs to make a living
SMILE IN SANVORDEM
* Codli to Sanvordem belt is the only part where mining has started
* Truck-repair shops benefit as a result of resumption of mining
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A local in Sanguem, who preferred to remain anonymous, said, “I owned a truck as I used to get business from mining. But, I sold it in 2012 soon after a ban was imposed on mining. There are a lot of people in Sanguem who own 5-6 trucks but they are lying idle now, as mining hasn’t started here.”
While truck owners are in a quandary over what's to be done with their trucks, it is the truck-drivers who are actually affected the most. Another source informed, “Most truck drivers have gone abroad as there is no work here.”
Trucks and machinery, which at one point in time was used in mining, is parked by the road-side in several parts of Sanguem. A truck owner informed, “A truck which has remained idle for 4 years requires at least Rs one lakh for repairs to bring the vehicle back on road.”
Needless to say, truck-owners will spend so much money on repairs only if they have hopes of recovering the same. Mining was the back-bone of Sanguem and Quepem’s economy and in the absence of it people are left to fend for themselves using whatever ways they can find.
A local said, “I worked in a mine till it was banned in 2012. I used to make Rs 15,000 a month. Today, I find it very tough to make even Rs 500.”
When asked what he does to make a living, he replied, “Whatever comes my way I do. I go to work in the fields. People pay me to cut branches, shrubs etc. Sometimes, I get paid to pluck fruits from cashew trees.”
Left without work, such mining dependents have to do menial jobs to make some money. A number of truck-owners informed that they had sold their trucks afetr the Supreme Court imposed ban on mining in the State.
Time has proven that they were lucky. For if they hadn’t sold their trucks then, it would have been near impossible to sell them today.
In the two talukas of Sanguem and Quepem, Codli to Sanvordem belt is the only part where mining has started. Locals from Sanvordem informed that few companies are actually able to excavate fresh ore in this belt.
As a result, trucks loaded with ore could be seen approaching Capxem jetty to unload. The road leading to Capxem jetty has a number of truck-repair shops, which have benefited due to resumption of mining here.
A truck-owner in Sanvordem said, “We make Rs 60,000 per truck a month. Of this, Rs 20,000 goes to driver for his salary and room-rent. Another Rs 20,000 goes into fuel and repair. If you see, trucks are used roughly in mining, which makes it necessary to repair them. Overall, we are left with only Rs 20,000 per truck per month, which is not much.”
Mining dependents in Sanvordem may not be making as much money as they made in 2012, which makes their problem relative. But, in other parts of Sanguem and Quepem, it is the absolute lack of work, which has made life extremely difficult for people.
