the goan I network
MARGAO
A day after the Gandhi market scrapyard fire incident, Margao Civic Chief Babita Prabhudesai conceded that the city is sitting on a ticking time bomb and has issued instructions to the Chief Officer to get to the scrapyards shifted to the nearby industrial estates.
The MMC Chief along with Margao MLA Digambar Kamat, Chief Officer Siddivinayak Naik, DySP Traffic Prabodh Shirwaikar descended in the Gandhi market on Monday morning to take stock of the situation.
The Margao MLA said that the road leading to the Gandhi market will be hotmixed soon and has asked the traffic police to mark the parking lot along the road and tow all the vehicles parked outside the designated place.
“Residents of the Gandhi market cannot made to suffer because of unauthorized parking. Last night, the residents had to clear around 150-200 motorcycles parked along the road, which made the entry of the fire tender difficult”, Kamat said.
The MMC Chairperson said she has asked the Chief Officer to find out how the scrapyard is operating in the heart of the commercial city and a public place such as a market. “The scrapyard has compromised on the safety of the residents, including the municipal workers staying in the area’, she said.
Saying that the residents staying in the Gandhi market area are unsafe in such an environment, the MMC Chairperson said, “we are sitting on a ticking time bomb. We have to take some action quickly. I have told the Chief Officer to write to the Industries department to find out how the scrapyards will be shifted out of the city to the nearby industrial estates”.
‘The Civic body will take a decision on the issue of scrapyards at a later date. There are a number of scrapyards located across the commercial capital which have to be looked into’, she added.
Chief Officer Siddivinayak Naik said that the Civic body will decide the question of shifting the scrap yards at a later date. “Right now, we have to take action against unauthorized parking along the Gandhi market road. Since this illegal parking is putting the lives of the people to risk and result in untoward incident, the Chief Officer said the Civic body will take prompt measures in the Gandhi
market.
When the media drew the attention of the Chief Officer to the delay in constructing an overhead tank in the Gandhi market to provide dedicated water supply in times of emergencies, Naik said the Civic body will revive the proposal if required.
Citizens threaten hunger strike
over market woes, set deadline
MARGAO: Post-scrap yard fire incident, the Gandhi Market Citizen’s Welfare Association has threatened to stage a hunger strike in front of the Margao Municipal Council if the Civic body fails to resolve the problems plaguing the residents in the market within 15 days.
Addressing the media, the residents led by Association general secretary Sheikh Riyaz said the pathetic conditions in the market has forced the residents to highlight their plight, with the authorities unable to resolve the garbage, traffic, parking issues plaguing the area. “An ambulance cannot come to the residential area of the market because of haphazard parking all along the route. Non-lifting of garbage from the market has left the entire area stinking. Around six vector borne diseases, including two dengue and malaria cases, were reported in the Gandhi market locality in recent times’, Riyaz said.
Referring to the Sunday night’s scrap yard incident, he claimed a total of three cylinder explosions rocked the area. “When the fire brigade arrived at the market, the road was blocked by motorcycles parked illegally. We want the authorities to address these issues or we sit on a hunger strike in front of the Civic body after 15 days”, Riyaz warned.
