MARGAO
As the stage is set for the seven-day old market feast fair, beginning on Thursday, the Margao Municipal Chairperson Damu Shirodkar and the officials have a question or two to answer “ will the civic body break the revenue collection record set by the council during the Purumentachem fest held in June last?
If officials are to be believed, the MMC had earned over Rs 25 lakh from the Purumentachem fest when ex-Chief Officer Rohit Kadam had plugged the revenue leakages.
Chairperson Shirodkar, who has vowed to mop up revenue since he assumed office, have a clear task cut out “ to break the record collection of revenue from the fair held June last.
Addressing the media on Wednesday with a plan drawn up to hold the fair in an organised manner, Shirodkar said each stall admeasuring six square metres will be charged around Rs 7,108, the fee levied for doing business at the fair during the seven days, inclusive of sopo and garbage charges.
While hawkers and vendors made a beeline to the civic body on Wednesday to pay the fees and collect their tokens before erecting the stalls, the MMC Chairperson said the process of allotment continues, and hence is not in a position to specify the revenue generated from the stalls.
Sources, however, said the civic body’s revenue from the fair should increase this time round because the sopo charges are being collected by the municipality departmentally and not by the contractor.
In this respect, Shirodkar pointed out that the civic body has levied Rs 200 sopo charges on the stalls per day, which works out to around Rs 1,400 on all the seven days
Officials surprised as MMC has no plans to charge SGPDA on stalls
MARGAO: The Margao Municipal Council had earned handsome revenue amounting to over Rs five lakh from the stalls set up on the SGPDA ground through licence fees.
When the media sought to know from the MMC Chairperson how much revenue is expected from the SGPDA this time around, Damu Shirodkar only said that the civic body will only collect Rs 200 as sopo and Rs 500 as garbage fees.
Incidentally, ex-Chief Officer Rohit Kadam had ensured that the SGPDA paid the MMC over Rs five lakh through licence fees.
Even officials were surprised over why the civic body has no plans to charge the SGPDA fees on the stalls doing business on the PDA ground.
“We do not mind if the Goan carpenters are exempted from paying the fees, but certainly the SGPDA should pay the civic body the license fees,” remarked an official.
Traffic, parking plan unveiled
MARGAO: Even as Margao Traffic Cell in-charge, PI Gautam Salunke on Wednesday unveiled the traffic and parking plan for the seven-day old market fair, beginning from Thursday, the men-in-uniform seemed to have no answer on who will man the traffic in and around Old Goa on December 11 when Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be visiting Goa.
Unveiling the parking arrangements for the fair, the Margao Traffic officer told the media that no vehicles will be allowed to park on the main road on NH-17 i.e. from KTC Margao to Holy Spirit Church.
He further said no vehicles will be allowed to park on SH-5 from Old Market Circle to Swimming Pool Circle. Also on Colva road from Old Market Circle to Madel Bridge.
He said the vehicles will be parked only at designated parking lots at the SGPDA ground, SGPDA pick-up stand, open space before Star Paradise Hotel, on open space in front of Chatrapati restaurant Madel, ring road leading to Comba Margao and the open Space near Shetye Steel on SH 5 road.
