MARGAO
As the Margao Urban Health Centre building becoming the third decades old structure to collapse in the commercial in the last three monsoons, failure to conduct structural stability audit of the old and dilapidated building, including heritage structures dotting across the commercial capital, have come back to sharp focus.
For, the Margao Municipal Council and the District Disaster Management Authority have been caught napping time and again as they have been found wanting in insisting on the structural stability of the old and dilapidated buildings in the city.
In fact, a fiat issued by outgoing South Goa District Collector, Jyoti Kumari to the Margao Municipal Council to update the list of the old and dilapidated buildings have gone abegging, with neither the powers that be controlling the civic body nor the district disaster management authority showing any urgency to get the civic body update the list till date.
Blame it on lack of political will or otherwise, The Goan understands that then Collector’s directions to the MMC has been conveniently confined to the dusty records of the civic body as a result of which the updated list of dilapidated building is still to see light of the day.
Fatorda Congress leader Yogesh Nagvenkar squarely blamed the government for the collapse of the Margao Urban Health Centre building. “Has the government carried out an audit or inspection of the old and heritage buildings? Around 30-35 buildings in Margao alone are facing danger of crumbling down, but neither the Margao Municipality nor the government has any action plan how to go about averting danger to the citizens,” he said.
Terming the collapse of the urban health centre building as the collapse of the State administration, Yogesh said the government should come out with an insurance policy to compensate citizens injured or who die in building collapse. “A mechanism should be worked out to compensate the tenants so that the buildings are razed down after accommodating them. But, there seemed no will on the part of the government,” he rued.
Shadow Council for Margao convenor and former MMC chairperson Savio Coutinho has warned that going by the manner in which Margao Municipal building is neglected, it could be next in line to collapse.
Commenting on the dilapidated structures located at various places in the city, Coutinho said the Council has failed to update the list of hazardous structures that were last prepared in the year 2012.
He also pointed out an interesting fact that, with the exception of the building portion that collapsed at the entrance of the Gandhi market, all other structures that collapsed during the last few years did not figure in the list of dilapidated structures, thus confirming the requirement of a fresh survey to identify such structures.
Coutinho said the MMC building is facing a severe threat as the entire building is soaked with water.
Govt not keen in protecting private heritage buildings, charges Vijai
MARGAO: Asserting that the collapse of the Margao Urban Health Centre (MUHC) building is a wakeup call for the government, Goa Forward chief Vijai Sardesai on Saturday said the government is neither keen in protecting private heritage building by incentivising the owners, nor is interest on protecting the government-owned heritage structures.
In fact, Sardesai, who visited the MUHC building site, said what is seen at Margao during the weekend is just a sample considering Chief Minister Pramod Sawant’s announcement to erase Portuguese symbols from the State.
He said it is high time the government conduct a structural audit of the government-owned heritage structures and take up the protection of private heritage structures by incentivising the owners.
“When we had decided to paint the Hospicio retaining wall couple of months ago, Digambar Kamat had sent police force to stop us. The government has no plan to protect the heritage structures,” he added.
