MAPUSA
Despite facing a severe labour crunch, the Mapusa Municipal Council (MMC) is expected to re-start its much-acclaimed anti-encroachment drive in town very soon.The civic body is in the process of putting its team of labourers in place which will fan out in different directions within the municipal jurisdiction to conduct the anti-encroachment drive.
MMC Vice-Chairperson Viraj Phadke informed that the civic body was very eager to restart the drive but its work was getting hampered due to shortage of labour.
He said two labourers each have been deputed to every ward (Mapusa has 20 wards) while six other labourers have been sent to the fire department for rain-related work.
“We are facing a shortage of labourers. But all the same, we are trying to gather labourers from other sources and form four teams that will carry out the anti-encroachment drive. We will try to start the drive by the end of this week but it all depends on the availability of labour,” Phadke said.
The civic body’s anti-encroachment drive was raised during the recent Janata Darbar hosted by PWD Minister, Nilesh Cabral.
While raising the issue at the darbar, a resident of Mapusa, Siddhi Naik had said the drive was well appreciated by the citizens but alleged that there was “partiality” while conducting the drive.
She said the municipal council had conducted the drive all around Mapusa town but failed to apply the anti-encroachment drive to “Goa Bagayatdar Bazar” which had flouted all rules and encroached upon a large open space.
PWD Minister Nilesh Cabral directed the Mapusa Chief Officer to immediately restart the drive in a fair manner and ensure that Goa Bagayatdar was covered in the drive.
“Don't do a selective drive. See that you cover all the areas with proper planning. They will start the drive by next week,” Cabral assured the aggrieved resident.
The MMC had started its anti-encroachment drive on May 10 seizing goods on footpaths and road widening areas.
The drive had support of the locals who appreciated the civic body’s action as it cleared the footpaths and restored some sanity in the market.
The drive had also instilled a sense of fear among the shopkeepers and vendors.
At several places, the owners had started removing goods and clearing extensions on their own.
