the goan I network
MARGAO
Margao Municipal Council’s technical section is bracing up to open the e-tender for covering of the Sonsodo dump yard on Thursday after the first attempt had gone abegging with bidders shying away from quoting their bids for the Rs 19 lakh project.
The civic body, however, finds itself in a catch-22 situation even in the event a bidder evinces interest in the covering work.
The reason is simple: Post-Sonsodo fire incident, many say though the site has been capped with mud to douse the flames and smoke, it is feared that fire may recur anytime fuelled by the methane gas, throwing up a pertinent question whether it would be prudent to cover the dump with Rs 19 lakh worth tarpaulin and risk damage to it by fire.
On the other hand, the Margao civic body has been carrying out the annual ritual of covering the dump yard for the last nine years upon directions of the High Court, raising questions whether it would amount to contempt if the civic body does not comply with the court directions.
Leave alone the High Court directions, municipal officials fear that non-covering of the dump may result in the leachate flowing down the dump to the adjoining water bodies, inviting action from agencies such as the Goa State Pollution Control Board.
Margao Municipal Council Chairperson Babita Prabhudesai conceded that the civic body indeed finds itself in a fix over the Sonsodo dump. “It’s a catch-22 situation, whether to cover the dump with tarpaulin given that the fire might recur anytime. If we don’t cover the site with tarpaulin, the leachate might just flow down the dump and contaminate the storm water nullahs,” she said.
To tide over the situation, the MMC Chairperson said that the civic body would seek the advice of the Director of Municipal Administration (DMA) Dr Tariq Thomas how to go about the job. She further pointed out that either the DMA would write to the Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB) seeking opinion on the covering of the site with tarpaulin post-fire incident or the civic body would send a communique to the Pollution Control Board to guide the council in this situation.
The Margao municipality has been covering the Sonsodo dump yard since 2009 after the High Court directed the civic body to carry out the exercise to prevent leachate from flowing down the drains. In fact, sources informed that the civic body must have spent close to Rs one crore to conduct the annual ritual of covering the dump yard.
