MARGAO
A sense of relief has descended at the Margao Municipal Council after the High Court finally capped the half-a-decade long proceedings in respect of the Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by NGOs, Citizens for Democracy and Goa Foundation over the Sonsodo waste imbroglio.
The High Court’s disposal of the PIL on March 12 may tempt the councillors to go on a celebration mode, with civic chief Damu Shirodkar leading the pack in pointing out that the High Court has patted the civic body on its back for ushering a turnaround at Sonsodo.
The battle over Sonsodo, however, is not over yet. For, the High Court has issued a host of directions to the Margao Municipality, the Goa Waste Management Corporation, and has expected the Chief Minister-headed High Powered Coordination Committee (HPCC) to put things in place at Sonsodo at the earliest.
That’s not all. While disposing of the Public Interest Litigation, the High Court, however, has set a time frame for the agencies to comply with the directions and file compliance reports before the Court over the status of the court’s directions.
The government as well as the Margao Municipal councillors may rush to claim a complete turnaround at Sonsodo, with the legacy dump remediation almost ended and the Sonsodo waste management shed cleared of the piled up waste.
Their claim may not be entirely misplaced when Sonsodo has become odour free and has been rid of flies and leachate. The fact, however, remains that the Margao Municipal is still not treating a single ton of the 30-ton wet waste generated daily in the commercial capital with the waste disposed of at the Cacora waste treatment plant. Both the government and the MMC has indeed a task at hand “ how to address the long-term issue of the treatment of the 30-ton wet waste generated in the city with the Goa Waste Management Corporation ringing alarm bells that the Cacora waste treatment plant meant for the talukas of Sanguem, Dharbandora, Quepem and Canacona may reach a state of saturation within a year and may leave no room for Margao waste.
This particular aspect and the most important one did occupy the minds of the High Court bench comprising of Justice Mahesh Sonak and Justice Valmiki Menezes when they disposed of the PIL last week.
In fact, when Advocate General D Pangam made a reference to the establishment of the 15TPD bio-methanation plant at Sonsodo or making the 5TPD bio-methanation plant at the SGPDA market operational, stating that the High Powered Coordination Committee (HPCC) would meet and take a decision on these issues, the High Court Bench made a pointed observation “we expect the HPCC to address these issues as soon as possible and issue necessary directions to the GWMC and the MMC”.
Though the High Court has disposed of the PIL, the Court issued a clear direction on the question of setting up the 15TPD bio-methanation plant at Sonsodo or making the 5TPD bio-methanation plant operational, asserting the Margao Municipal Council file a status report/affidavit on this particular issue in the Court by July 5, 2024.
Directions to MMC, GWMC while disposing of 2019 PIL petition
-The MMC will ensure that a new transformer will be installed at the Sonsodo site within three months
-The GWMC must complete the construction of the sanitary landfill at the Sonsodo site within six months
-The GWMC must complete the retaining wall construction along the plot boundary at Sonsodo as expeditiously as possible and, in any case, before 30.06.2024
-The Sewerage and Infrastructural Corporation of Goa must complete the work to extend the sewerage line to Sonsodo within six months from today to facilitate the disposal of sewage and treated leachate
-The MMC, GMWC, and the Sewerage and Infrastructural Corporation of Goa must file compliance/status affidavits by 05.07.2024
