MAPUSA
In attempt to give Calangute beach promenade a facelift, the panchayat has requested the tourism department to handover the area to the local body so that it can beautify the area and maintain it.
The promenade “ the area opposite the statue of Dr Bausaheb Bandodkar up to the beach “ has not been properly maintained, even as encroachments have sprouted around giving the area a bad look, the panchayat wrote to the tourism minister.
“It is sad to see the approach road to the Calangute beach is in a dilapidated condition and it wears a look of garbage dumping yard. We request you to handover the said promenade area to the Calangute Panchayat so that we can carry out maintenance work in the area,” said Calangute Deputy Sarpanch Joseph Sequeira, in a signed letter to the tourism minister.
The tourism department had spent Rs 1 crore to renovate the area a couple of years back but has failed to maintain cleanliness of the promenade, the deputy sarpanch said.
“The area appears to be infested with garbage, as the personnel appointed by the tourism department segregate the garbage at the promenade creating a nuisance in the area,” he said. “Beggars, touts and hawkers have been moving around freely in the area, giving the place a bad name,” he added.
The panchayat has plans to develop the area with proper lighting and even erect some benches for senior citizens, who can come and spend some time there.
“We want to install free wifi in the area and also fix 12 CCTV cameras from the junction to the beach,” Sequeira said.
