MAPUSA
For more than a fortnight, filthy water from a choked drain has been overflowing onto the main road in Khorlim-Mapusa, causing a major nuisance to locals and motorists.
The water accumulates in the middle of the road, hampering the movement of vehicles and put pedestrians to inconvenience.
The accumulated filthy water also emanates foul smell and is a perfect breeding ground for water-borne diseases.
A local from the area informed that all the sewage water released by people who reside atop the hill in Khorlim flows into the drain which empties into the adjacent fields.
He said all the silt and plastic garbage has choked the drain and as a result, water overflows onto the main road.
NCP General Secretary Sanjay Barde said the drain has been overflowing for the past two weeks and the Mapusa civic body was just not bothered to rectify the problem.
“If the Mapusa Municipal Council (MMC) fails to start work to de-silt the drain within 24 hours, then I will personally hire a JCB and start the work of cleaning the drain,” Barde warned on Wednesday.
The affected road leads up to popular restaurants, several upscale business stores and offices of political parties in the area.
Incidentally, the North Goa District BJP office is also located across the road and the local MLA, Mapusa Municipla Council chairperson, councillors and all the senior BJP party office-bearers have to move through the same overflowing road to get to the party office.
“The elected representatives and the BJP office-bearers move about with posh cars and therefore are not affected by the problem. It’s the common man who is left to suffer silently,” Barde said.
The authorities and the civic body, however, choose to shift the blame on the matter.
MMC Chairperson Shubhangi Vaigankar informed that the drain/nullah belongs to the Water Resources Department and the department has been sounded in the matter.
“We have informed the WRD about the issue and the department is expected to desilt the drain/nullah,” Vaigankar said.
While the civic body and the authorities take their sweet time to rectify the wrong, it’s the common man who has to suffer.
