VASCO
South Goa Collector Dr Tariq Thomas and other officials on Saturday carried out an inspection in the vicinity of the Dabolim International Airport in a bid to resolve the parking issues faced by people.
Various officials including Mormugao Deputy Collector Mahadev Arondekar, Mormugao DySP Sunita Sawant, DySP South Traffic Prabodh Shirvoikar, Dabolim PI Shailesh Narvekar and Airport Director BCH Negi were present during the hour-long joint inspection. Later, Dr Thomas and other officials had a detailed interaction with Negi.
Speaking to reporters, Dr Thomas, who was on his maiden official visit to the airport, described the visit as a general inspection. “The team will analyse the findings and work on options available to address the parking issues,” said Dr Thomas. “It’s a complex issue and has been there for quite some time. We will take some time, have a discussion and arrive at a particular solution. All authorities are present here and we will have a further joint discussion on this issue.”
The collector also met the United Taximen Union (UTU), an association of 350-odd black-yellow taxis and interacted with its members. UTU President Sanjay Naik said they had been demanding a parking lot for a long time, but felt sidelined in the matter.
Dr Thomas assured that all stakeholders would be taken into confidence before arriving at any decision to resolve parking issues at the airport.
“The airport is witnessing growth. Tourists arriving are on the rise. Parking issue definitely needs to be addressed,” Dr Thomas said.
Airport Director BCH Negi said the Airports Authority of India (AAI) had sought alternate land from the State government for parking facilities and was hopeful of getting such land on priority.
Meanwhile UTU President told reporters that taxi operators making trips to and from the airport were forced to park along the highway due to non-availability of parking facilities.
“Parking along the highway leads to traffic congestion and also causes accidents, while passengers have to cross the road with their baggage. Pedestrians in the locality also face hardships. We have also demanded that the multilevel parking lot at the airport be made operational to avoid accidents and traffic chaos,” Naik said.
