Goemkarponn Desk
CANACONA: The arrival of monsoons have been welcomed in Canacona taluka, but nature lovers have raised an alarm over leachate from the Garbage Treatment Plant (GTP) at Dumanem directly entering the paddyfields and Dumane revulet.
The highly contaminated leachate flows further down to the Agonda river and on its route simultaneously spreading the paddyfields alongside the river, before getting released into the Arabian Sea.
Incidentally, the highly contaminated odour emanating along the accumulation and flow of leachate makes a person to vomit.
Not only nearby residents who unfortunately have to continuously bear the unhealthy atmosphere, but motorists on the Agonda -Canacona road are having a tough time, due to the unbearable stench and it’s odour emanating from GTP and the leachate which accumulates adjacent to the road in the form of a Pond, before it overflow through the roadside drainage.
According to nature lovers in and around Agonda, the flow of leachate into the Agonda river has been a regular feature every monsoon, largely due to the huge dumps of untreated garbage at GTP, which has also generated unbearable stench in the entire area.
According to sources, the heavy leachate flow is not only from the untreated and unprotected dumps inside GTP compound, but also from the strewn garbage left unattended in the open sorrounding forest cover.
Incidentally, CMC Chairperson Simon Rebello blames the unscrupulous elements for the leachate flow saying, “People from elsewhere dump garbage at the entrance of the GTP, which sometimes is lying there and gets washed through the drainage and is flushed into the Dumanem rivulet and later into the Agonda river. This issue is to be seriously addressed soon after rains and stop the illegal dumping at the entrance,” Rebello said, however silent on CMC staff failing to clear the strewn garbage before the monsoons have hit the State.
CMC which operates the GTP Dumane which falls in the vicinity of Shrishthal panchayat, also operates a gate which barricades the entry onto the road leading to the GTP, however fails to maintain the road as well it’s sorrounding clean. Begining the entrance accross Agonda -Canacona road, the entire uneven kutcha road(non-tarred) stretch upto the GTP compound remains infested with strewn garbage, complains farmers going to their fields situated beyond the GTP compound.
