VASCO
Former Cortalim deputy sarpanch Raymond De Sa on Monday accused the panchayat led by Sarpanch Senia Pereira of harassing him by dumping the garbage right outside his house along the road leading to ferry point and three other locations in the village.
De Sa told reporters that while he was being targeted, people around the area also faced a lot of hardships with garbage lying on the roadsides.
Desa said while he was out of town for a few days, he began getting calls from people of his ward that garbage was being kept at various locations, especially near his house.
"I was unaware and told people there may have been issues with garbage collection and that I would sort it out on returning to Goa. I informed the panchayat secretary and he got it cleared before I reached Goa.”
“While I was at home for lunch on Monday, I started getting stench and I saw that garbage was lying outside my house and there was an unbearable stench. I dialled 100 and informed the police. A police team arrived and I saw a rickshaw loaded with garbage near my house. I immediately removed the vehicle keys and handed it over to the police," said De Sa.
Desa claimed that while earlier the garbage vehicle would go door-to-door clearing the garbage, the garbage truck now has been coming in the evening, leaving garage unattended the entire day at some points, one of which was outside his house.
"This is deliberately done as to target me since I am in the opposition and while they are trying to target me, people are forced to bear the stench of garbage all day long.”
Garbage contractor changed
last week: Cortalim Sarpanch
VASCO: Refuting the allegations, Cortalim Sarpanch Senia Pereira said the garbage contractor had been changed last week based on directives from higher-ups.
When contacted, Pereira said De Sa being a panch member could raise his issues at the panchayat meeting or approach relevant authorities like BDO to seek clarity, instead of misguiding people.
"There is no illegality and I will not stoop to such a low level to target anyone. The previous garbage contractor was not registered with Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB) and based on letters from GSPCB and BDO, we have changed the contractor since last week.”
“We now have an officially GSPCB-registered contractor who has employed workers who go with bins door to door and then call a rickshaw to collect all garbage which has been collected in the day.”
“While De Sa is a panch member, he must raise his issues at the Panchayat meeting or approach relevant authorities to seek clarity, instead of misguiding people or take the law into his hands," said Pereira.
