Goemkarponn desk
PANAJI:
In a unique way to highlight the lack of coordination between government departments, Congress leader Savio Coutinho presented a bouquet of flowers to the sewerage department Contractor who commenced the digging up of a recently asphalted road.
Savio Coutinho along with Adv. Snehal Onskar and Ireneu Fernandes visited the site where the Contractor engaged for the laying a 1.50 km sewerage pressure line along the KRC station road near ESI Hospital Margao and presented the flowers for their “grand achievement” in opening up the road which was provided by Hotmix carpet less than a fortnight ago.
Speaking to the media Mr Coutinho stated that every year the Margao MLA Digamber Kamat presents what he terms as his report Card, and boasts about hundreds of crores of public funds being spent on development works in Margao. The fact that all these precious resources are criminally wasted stands confirmed with these types of shoddy works Mr Coutinho charged.
He stated that development works titled as providing Hotmix carpet/Gutters/slabs at “various places in Margao” is a multi-crore scam, as a lot of duplication of works; and payment without execution is witnessed. And in the absence of display of boards, it is impossible for any common man to understand which work is executed through which tender, he stated further.
Coutinho also informed that on 28th October 2023, the MLA and the ward councillor Deepali Sawal had launched the work of putting rumblers along the same road, which stand buried under the Hotmix carpet provided recently. Nowhere in Goa, we have seen MLAs breaking coconuts to launch work of putting rumblers on the road but breaking coconuts has become a trademark of our MLA, which ends up becoming a wasteful expenditure.
Coutinho appealed to Madgaonkars to wake up and understand how public funds are wasted in the name of haphazard development works. “The Margao MLA is only using people to come and clap for himself at the time of such launching ceremonies”, Coutinho mocked as he hoped that the people of Margao would understand how they are equally responsible for the deterioration of the state of Margao with Mr Kamat as the representative.
Adv. Snehal Onskar condemned the authorities for the unplanned works which led to the damage of a pipeline during the course of digging. The entire line will be shut down for repair work, and the public will have to suffer without water supply, Adv. Snehal said.
Ireneu Fernandes called for a system where the heads of the department could be held responsible in the event such coordinated work is seen leading to huge monetary losses to the public exchequer.
