MARGAO
Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar’s proposal to build small culverts/bridges along the three-kilometre stretch of the flood plains of river Sal between Seraulim and Benaulim came in for strong rejection from the villagers on Monday, who yet again made a strong pitch for construction of the bypass on stilts.
Given the situation, Benaulim and Seraulim villagers told the contractor to stop all work on the bypass stretch passing through these two villages, warning that any decision to go ahead with the work may result in untoward incident.
Two separate meetings arranged by the National Highway officials and the consultant at Seraulim and Benaulim in the presence of Benaulim MLA Churchill Alemao witnessed strong objections from residents of these two villages for the proposed culverts on the three-kilometre stretch.
While Seraulim villagers opposed the additional culverts/small bridges proposed by the National Highway authorities at the meeting held on Monday morning, Benaulim villagers followed suit in the evening.
The Benaulim MLA told the media that he stands by the decision of the villagers of both Seraulim and Benaulim, even as he told the contractor not to go ahead with the work on the flood-prone stretch.
Bypass project head Rizvi Ansari told The Goan after the meeting at Seraulim that he held a power point presentation for the benefit of the villagers after incorporating the suggestions mooted by Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar to build additional small bridges for smooth flow of rain water.
“People are not accepting these small bridges as they have insisted on construction of the bypass on stilts. I will brief the government officials on the factual position of the bypass,” Ansari said.
Seraulim residents, including Rodney Almeida and Benjamin Fernandes, maintained that they had demanding stilts since 2007 when the National Highways had first disclosed plans to build the bypass. “Seraulim village will get submerged if the bypass is not built on stilts. We are not opposed to the bypass per se, but the people are only demanding that it should be built on stilts,” Rodney said.
The residents pointed out that the government should think of development requirement for the next 100 years, while opposing any plans by the National Highways to bulldoze with the project.
Former Benaulim Sarpanch Royla Fernandes and others lodged their strong objection to the construction of the bypass by filling of land and maintained that the culverts proposed by the consultant and the NH will not stop flooding of the village.
Benaulim MLA Churchill Alemao said that he too is in favour of stilts. The villagers are apprehensive that the small culverts will not resolve flooding of the low-lying areas of both these villages, he said.
PWD Executive Engineer (National Highways), Rajendra Kamat, told the Benaulim MLA and the residents that he would convey the villagers’ decision to the higher ups. The villagers demanded that the PWD compile the minutes of the meetings and send them to the sarpanchas of the two villages as well as the local MLA.
Kamat further told the Benaulim MLA that inundation of the low-lying areas of Benaulim and Seraulim can be taken care of by desilting river Sal and by constructing retaining walls along the river embankment.
Sarpanchas of both Benaulim and Seraulim, Diella Fernandes and Domingos Fernandes, respectively, later told the media that villagers have in one voice demanded bypass on stilts.
