PANAJI
Two village panchayats in Tiswadi are exploring the option of sending their wet waste to the Bicholim Municipal Council's waste treatment plant as the temporary shutdown of the Saligao Solid Waste Management Facility continues to disrupt garbage disposal arrangements in the region.
Sources in the Old Goa panchayat told The Goan that discussions have already been initiated with officials of the Bicholim Municipal Council to accept their wet waste for processing at its five-tonne-per-day facility. The exact details of the discussions with the Bicholim municipal authorities are not known, and calls made to Old Goa Sarpanch, Medha Parvatkar, went unanswered.
Similar efforts as those of the Old Goa panchayat are being made by the neighbouring Corlim panchayat, which is also among the local bodies affected by the Saligao plant closure.
The crisis erupted after the Goa Waste Management Corporation (GWMC) suspended acceptance of municipal solid waste from six Tiswadi panchayats and two municipal councils for 25 days from October 10 due to major maintenance work and operational constraints at the Saligao facility. The affected panchayats are Santa Cruz, Merces, Chimbel, Corlim, Curca-Bambolim and Old Goa.
The Saligao facility has reduced its processing capacity from 150 tonnes per day to about 100-110 tonnes while repairs are undertaken on a biodigester unit. GWMC has directed the affected local bodies to make alternative arrangements for handling waste generated within their jurisdictions.
However, panchayats say they were caught off guard by the prolonged suspension and have received little practical support from the government in identifying alternative disposal sites.
With wet waste continuing to accumulate on a daily basis, concerns are mounting over unhygienic conditions and public health risks in these villages. Several panchayats have resorted to storing collected waste at local facilities while scrambling for temporary solutions.
Sources said the Bicholim option could provide immediate relief if an arrangement is formalised. For now, however, the six panchayats remain in a race against time to prevent a full-blown garbage crisis while awaiting the resumption of normal operations at Saligao.
