Panjimites are seemingly running out of patience over the hardships they have been facing due to the ongoing Smart City works in the capital.
In the last week alone, two mishaps have occurred and in both cases, roads caving in the periphery of dug-up zones where work is going on is the cause.
First, a laterite stone-loaded truck went down injuring four labourers, one of them seriously. Next, a night soil tanker similarly went down a couple of days ago and agencies involved in executing the work have been glaringly guilty of failing to put in place any precautionary barricades or safety measures.
These events and the chaotic situation they face daily to commute both within the city and also in and out of it is giving rise to simmering discontent and even anger among the citizenry.
On Saturday, dozens of citizens met at the Panaji Church hall where several vent their anger over the ongoing Smart City projects and the chaos it has given rise to in the city. At the meet, some described it as a waste of public money.
Businessmen livid
Separately, businessmen and traders, operating mostly from ground floor shops in the city, are angry due to two reasons: one, there is a drastic fall in their business due to the traffic chaos affecting people's movement in the city and two the unbearable dust pollution caused by the ongoing works.
The Goan spoke to several traders and business owners in the city who vent their anger and accused the authorities of going ahead with work without consulting the residents or the business and trading community.
"They could have planned the execution of the work better. It could have been executed zone by zone instead of taking up the work in multiple areas at the same time without bothering about the inconvenience it is causing across the city," said a second-generation businessman who however did not want to be identified fearing retribution by the authorities.
Blind eye to safety
North Goa Collector Mamu Hage, IAS, had authorised the excavation of roads and traffic diversion for the work with several riders to minimize inconvenience to the public. The executing agencies, however, have ignored the conditions.
For instance, Hage in the notification had stipulated that the contractor deploy maximum traffic marshals round-the-clock to guide motorists and regulate vehicular traffic. On ground zero, there is nothing, not even a single marshal.
Other conditions require the contractors to install red lamps/lights for clear visibility at night and to ensure that no construction material should be dumped on the road. Both these conditions imposed by Hage are violated with impunity at all the locations.
But then, who will bell the cat? Who will initiate action to correct the situation and spare Panaji's residents and visitors the inconvenience?
Unless the Collector steps in to ensure the conditions imposed by her at the time of authorizing the excavations, there seems to be no hope of deliverance from the chaos. But with her doubling up as managing director and CEO of IPSCL, Hage is least expected to act against an agency she herself is responsible for.
Smart Roads
The Imagine Panaji Smart City Development Limited (IPSCDL) has taken up four stretches of roads of Panaji to be developed as 'smart roads' -- Old Patto bridge to Four Pillars junction running parallel to the Rua de Ourem creek, the stretch from St Inez junction near Taj Vivanta up to the Goa International Hotel T-junction and the one connecting the Bal Bhavan-Campal Clinic road.
So far, only the Bal Bhavan-Campal Clinic smart road, complete with cycling lanes, is completed and commissioned.
But engineers and officials on the ground, however, admit that the others taken up are unlikely to be completed before June, definitely not, after the State government has now issued a fiat to the IPSCDL and all other agencies that they have to complete or shut down work by March 15 to enable it to ready the capital city to host foreign delegations for a G-20 conference.
GSUDA is the agency executing the smart roads work and the progress is slow. The work involves common utility ducts, and preliminary work had begun back in May last year.
Sewerage enhancement
Another major project which is the source of the chaos is the sewerage network enhancement which IPSCDL has taken up through the PWD in around 10 of the total 15 zones of Panaji.
The project envisages replacing all existing pipelines with high-density PE of 600 mm diameter which can handle the large-scale transfer of liquids withstanding high amounts of pressure, unaffected. New sewage chambers across the city are also being built.
Although it was claimed that this work will be complete by April, the diktat of the State government to finish or stop all work by March 15 because of the G-20 event, has cast doubts on whether this deadline will be accomplished.
The hardships and the chaos being faced currently notwithstanding, Panaji and its residents face the prospects of a worse nightmare, once the monsoon hits in June.
Demand to shift G-20
The State government has been petitioned to refrain from interrupting the ongoing 'Smart City' works because of the G-20 meet in the capital and to instead shift the latter to any other convenient venue.
Taking cognisance of the media reports that the works being undertaken in the capital city will be paused, Together for Panaji Association' an organisation in the city has written to the authorities to refrain from doing so.
"TFPA would like to highlight that the residents of Panaji have endured the hardships resulting from the constant digging in the city with the hope that they will have better roads and a better drainage system in the coming months," it said, adding that with the suspension of the works, it is easy to anticipate that it will continue for much longer than planned.
"During the Monsoons, the city is likely to see tremendous flooding due to incomplete works. We urge the government to select an alternate venue for the event and spare the city an elongated workzone experience," it said.
