MARGAO
An agitated Benaulim MLA Venzy Viegas on Friday descended on the Colva road leading to the iconic beach to protest over the presence of policemen within a distance of 200 metres to challan motor vehicle violators.
He has since called for a meeting of the Colva police station in-charge, PI Therron D’Costa and Colva Traffic Cell in-charge, PI Filiomena D’Costa at his office to work out coordination between the Colva police and the traffic police.
What infuriated the Aam Aadmi Party Benaulim MLA was the presence of both the Colva police and the traffic police within 200 metre radius on the main beach road, demanding to know whether this augurs well when visitors flocking to the Iconic beach.
In fact, he demanded to know why the police are not found at the other beach stretches such as Betalbatim and Majorda and questioning their presence only at Colva, that too within a distance of 200 metres.
At one point, the Benaulim MLA told the traffic cops on duty on the road to take away the traffic cell from Colva and set up at a different place. “I have been receiving complaints that visitors to the iconic beach are being harassed by the men-in-uniform, first near the Colva police station and then by the traffic police near the football grounds. This has to stop if visitors continue to visit the iconic beach,” he said.
The MLA pointed out that either the Colva police should be on the roads or the traffic police attached to the traffic cell. For better coordination amongst the two wings of the Goa police, the Benaulim MLA has now called for a meeting of the Colva traffic cell in-charge and the in-charge of the Colva police to ensure that either the Colva police or the traffic police are deployed on the roads for traffic policing.
In the past too, complaints were made over the presence of the men-in-uniform on the roads leading to the Colva beach and other beaches along Salcete coastal belt.
