the goan I network
MARGAO
With the raging fire burning for the third day at the Sonsodo dump, Wednesday witnessed a flurry of activities over the issue, with Deputy Chief Minister Vijai Sardesai virtually getting the Margao Municipal Council to hold an emergency meeting around noon to place order for 2000 litres of enzymes costing Rs 20 lakh to douse the fire.
Perhaps for the first time in recent times, the Margao Municipal Council held an emergency meeting within an hour of calling the meet by circulation to get the civic body’s sanction to spend the amount on the enzymes.
At Sonsodo, a visibly upset Deputy CM expressed his total displeasure over the manner in which the civic body tried to pass the buck to other agencies, including the district disaster management agency, insisting that the prime responsibility of handling the fire rested with the civic body.
Sardesai was apparently piqued over the correspondence made by the MMC CO to the Collector to treat the incident as a disaster. “Correspondence has not helped douse the fire. Call an emergency meeting within a hour now and pass a resolution to sanction funds for the enzymes. You cannot pass the buck on to the Collector. When you have funds at your disposal, the civic body should take a resolution and procure the material,” Sardesai told the CO, while instructing Chairperson Babita Prabhudesai to call an urgent meeting within an hour by circulation and take a resolution to that effect.
After the Deputy CM issued a host of instructions, the scene later shifted to the civic body as the city fathers assembled at the council hall for the emergency meeting chaired by Babita Prabhudesai.
While conceding that the Sonsodo fire has given rise to environmental pollution, Babita placed the proposal to procure 2000 litres of the enzymes from the Mumbai-based company at a cost of Rs 20 lakh.
There was neither any discussion on the issue nor any questions raised, barring a question raised by councillor Rupesh Mahatme, who sought to know how much a litre of enzyme will cost
the civic body. Babita
replied saying it will cost Rs 1000 per litre.
No sooner the council adopted the resolution, the CO set in motion the process to get the Mumbai-based company procure the enzymes, with the company official Nevrekar promising to get 500 litres of the enzymes by air on Wednesday evening itself and the balance in a day or two.
Nevrekar, however, maintained that it will take a week to completely cap the fire as the exercise involves spraying the enzymes over a period of two days.
