Traffic chaos on Sunday at Cuncolim By Armstrong Vaz
CUNCOLIM , Feb 8 --Cuncolim Municipal Council has turned up a classical example of the slow pace it works. Fed with the delaying tactics ten concerned citizens of Cuncolim are all set to approach the high court through a public interest litigation to set things in order at Cuncolim market on a hectic Sunday At Cuncolim. The municipal council is also accused of going slow tactics if one goes through the records available. The civic body has set citizens on a merry go round and delaying tactics and adding to the suffering of the people, instead of minimizing them. It may be recalled here that ten prominent residents of Cuncolim from diverse fields had in a letter dated 13-10-2004, addressed to the chief officer Joasinho Vaz had pointed to the obstruction caused to the pedestrians and vehicles at Cuncolim Bazar on Sunday. The residents had pointed out that public roads leading from the main road (starting from the National Highway 17) to the Church and also the road to the St Francis Xavier Chapel were being occupied by vendors. Further they had also pointed out that the pavements were being blocked by the vendors. They had also observed that the above facts were brought to the notice of the chief officer but nothing had been done in this regard. The residents had urged the Chief Officer to act on the complain within a period of 15 days, failing which they had threatened to move the High Court of Judicature at Bombay, goa bench. In another letter to the chief officer the group of ten residents asked for a copy of the resolution, wherein the CMC during the tenure of Filono Vaz as chairperson of the CMC had passed a resolution declaring the cross road at National Highway No 17 to St Francis Xavier Chapel, Maddicotto as a one way road. The Chief Officer after sitting on the application for nearly two months, has, in a strange reply, dated 4-12005 to the concerned ten citizens has asked the residents to approach the chairperson of CMC for the copy of the 1988 resolution. The residents now have approach the chairperson in their fresh letter dated 13-1-2005 for the copy of the 1988 resolution, making it a merry go round for the concerned citizens who want to alleviate the serving of their fellow villagers. The resolution was passed in 1988 with Francisco Gama as chief officer of CMC. It is observed that on Sunday's additional inflow of new hawkers selling different fruit items, vegetable and other food commodities and other items make it to the market. The hawkers are lined up on the road leading from Cuncolim church and leading to the Maddicotto chapel. Effectively it is closure of the road for residents of Maddicotto Osnimaddem, Gutton, Molanguinim, Zuzegal who after the Sunday mass where passing through the road freely without any encumbrance for the last several decades. Rresidents have now to move to the already crowded national highway and connect back to the road at Maddicotto chapel leading to traffic chaos. Sources informed that the closure of the road is not authorized by a gazette notification on a particular day. People attending religious ceremonies on Sundays cannot take their vehicles to the church compound. Instead, they have to park their vehicles on both sides of the road leading to Dandora from the Dandora side. People attending church from the other three side attending mass who are able to take the vehicles to the church compound then have to literally slog out to come out of the traffic inferno created by the short sightness of the Cuncolim Municipal Council. On Sundays, foot path and roads are being blocked to accommodate additional hawkers. giving the high court judgment a blind eye and effectively inviting provisions of the contempt of court proceedings. Meanwhile it was suggested that the immediate remedy before the Cuncolim Municipal Council would be to shift the additional Sunday hawkers to the fields near the Cuncolim football ground making provision for parking of vehicles at the proposed site and also level the field for the comfort of the hawkers, thus decongesting the market and also easing out some of the problems of traffic on a mad rush Sunday. The ten concerned citizens who have petitioned the Cuncolim municipal council include Jose Cruz Gomes, Rolence Coutinho, Randolph Coutinho, Filonio Vaz, Oscar Gracias, Joseph Fernandes, Jose Tavares, Welligton Tereza, Donato Fernandes and Barnabe Vaz. Incidentally three of them -- Oscar, Randoph, and Filonio -- are ex-councilors of the Cuncolim municipality, while Randoph Coutinho had even served as Sarpanch in the earlier Cunolim panchayat . Armstrong Vaz Goa
