the goan I network
MARGAO
Even as Madgavkars keep their fingers crossed over the fate of the Concession Agreement between the Margao Municipal Council and Fomento in relation to Sonsodo waste, the civic body’s first experiment with waste treatment is slowly and certainly getting buried under fresh waste.
While the government appears to be bracing up to open a new chapter at Sonsodo after legal issues between MMC and Fomento are resolved, Komex India Pvt Ltd’s abandoned shed, which was erected in the late 90s lies all buried under the debris if one goes by the ongoing pace of open dumping at the site.
The Margao municipality is being left with only the land in an around the Komex plant shed for open dumping of waste, with Fomento tightening the screws on the civic body to supply only segregated waste.
Ever since Fomento stopped accepting mixed waste from the Margao Municipal Council from June 17, the Margao Municipal Council turned to the open land playing host to the abandoned Komex plant shed to dispose of the tonnes of daily waste generated in the city, especially the waste collected from the 75-odd black spots and transfer stations across the city.
Sources in the know say the land around the Komex shed has the capacity to accommodate mixed waste for the next one year, with officials saying the place may play host to additional waste if the roof of the shed and the fabrication is dismantled and lifted away.
In fact, even as doubts are cast over the future of the Concession Agreement between Fomento and MMC with the former serving a 60-day notice on the civic body, stating that the agreement shall stand terminated upon the expiry of the notice and while calling upon the MMC to pay Rs 12.81 crore being the termination payment, those in the know say that Pune-based Komex had abandoned its project at Sonsodo around two decades ago, even without going into full-fledged operations.
Sources in the know recalled that while Komex had set up the plant at Sonsodo, many saw red when the company started exploiting the compost underneath the Sonsodo dump, raising questions why the company should not share the revenue earned via the sale of the compost.
A senior MMC official said the civic body has been left with no option but to dispose of the mixed waste from the black spots at the abandoned Komex shed. “The ongoing exercise will stop once the MMC deploys a gang of 25 labourers to segregate the mixed waste brought in by the trucks,” the official added.
