MARGAO
The gram sabha meeting of the Seraulim panchayat ended abruptly after the acting sarpanch Leslie Dourado called off the meeting citing uproar.
Gram sabha members were completely taken by surprise over the decision of the Sarpanch, as they pointed out that a spar between two groups of people cannot be the ground to call off the meeting. What further infuriated the members was that the acting Sarpanch maintained that the meeting has not been adjourned, but is called off, adding the next gram sabha will now take place only in January next year.
Justifying his decision, Leslie said the members were involved in directing their tirades at each other and were cross talking, creating uproar at the meeting. “The gram sabha meeting could not continued in such an atmosphere,” he he said.
The gram sabha meeting was chaired by the deputy Sarpanch Leslie Dourado and saw members discussing on the road underpass and the condition of the Seraulim railway crossing. Gram sabha member Kevin D’Souza sought the status of the much-awaited railway underpass construction, whether the construction is complete or whether the underpass is hit by a flaw in the design. He also highlighted that the railway level crossing path is not maintained properly and as a result the flow of traffic is slow and causes difficulty to children and older people, requesting that the Railways need to be told to fix it.
Trouble began when Kevin raised the question of garbage management, with a plea to update the gram sabha on the village garbage management plan. And before he could propose solar electricity for the Church and the government primary school, the meeting saw bedlam over the garbage issue. The Sarpanch was seen telling one of the members to sit down after the member pointed out that migrants are answering nature’s call in the fields, causing nuisance and health hazard to the farmers. Even as the member insisted on action in the matter, the Saprnach was overheard asking the member to sit down. In the meantime, a couple of gram sabha members pointed out that cow dung is being discharged in the nullah causing nuisance to the residents. At this time, another group of persons came face to face with the members creating uproar at the meeting hall, prompting the acting sarpanch to call off the meeting.
