MARGAO
Farmers of Seraulim have on Saturday complained that the construction of the western bypass coupled with the discharge of raw sewage water into the storm water drains in neighbouring Margao and Fatorda has adversely affected farming operations in the village.
As the farmers harvested a moderate yield of paddy this season, the farmers pointed out that the construction of the barrage at the river Sal near the wholesale fish market has further aggravated matters for Seraulim’s farming community.
Expressing gratitude to Congress leader Moreno Rebello and Everson Vales for making available the mechanical harvester right on time, the farmers made a fervent plea to the government to resolve the man-made problems affecting agriculture in Seraulim. “Agriculture operations in the village are now affected during the monsoons because of the western bypass. Since the bypass is built by the government, the rain water does not drain out quickly. In fact, we have experienced in the last monsoons that the water returns back, inundating and destroying our agricultural fields,” the farmers pointed out.
Saying the barrage construction on the river Sal near the wholesale fish market has further compounded their problems, the farmers pointed out that since raw sewage from Fatorda and the waste water from the wholesale fish market is released in the river, the contaminated water now enter the paddy fields whether the barrage is closed on the river.
Reminding that Seraulim village belongs to the farmers, with every house in the village involved in farming activities, the farmers called for the intervention to resolve the man-made issues.
Both Moreno Rebello and Everson Vales have complimented the Seraulim farmers for keeping alive the tradition of their ancestors despite facing problems such as destruction of the fields by peacocks and raw sewage devastating the fields.
