The following article appeared in today’s Navhind Times:
ANJUNA LOCALS DEMAND REVOCATION OF LICENCE TO PETROL PUMP NT NETWORK MAPUSA: The Anjuna gram sabha, which was held on Sunday after a gap of almost six months, saw the locals taking the panchayat members to task over various issues including roadside gaddas, film shooting in tghe panchayat premises and over a petrol pump project. In absence of sarpanch Pratima Govekar, deputy sarpanch Savio Almeida chaired the meeting. Locals from Gaumvaddi took to task the panchayat body for clearing a petrol pump project in haste. Locals demanded that the petrol pump licence be revoked and a resolution was taken to this effect. The villagers questioned the panchayat over its failure on various issues and its acts of commission and omission. When villager Ramesh Naik questioned the logic of the panchayat for not holding the gram sabha for last six months, the secretary Babu Shirodkar said that he had asked the sarpanch to hold the gram sabha earlier. Residents demanded to know regarding the resolution pertaining to bridge widening at Anjuna that was passed at the last gram sabha to which deputy sarpanch said that the same has been forwarded to the concerned department and now probably they were working on it as they have already visited the site. He also said that the crematorium work at Vagator and construction work of shops at Anjuna was in progress. Pradip Harmalkar charged the panchayat of allegedly siphoning off funds on the pretext of clearing overgrowth after the monsoon when actually the work was never carried out. He also sought to know why grazing land at Anjuna was now being used for commercial purpose to which Almeida replied saying that from Sunburn and another festival, the panchayat had earned Rs.60,000. The issue of large-scale encroachments and mushrooming of roadside gaddas also figured at the gram sabha. Almeida assured to conduct an inspection of such sites to take necessary action. Residents led by Harmalkar, Michael D’Souza sought to know the status of the recently inaugurated beautified lake. On this, Almeida said that the panchayat was completely in the dark. The issue of letting out the panchayat ghar for film shooting generated a lot of heat with the villagers seeking to know who would have been responsible if documents from the panchayat had gone missing during the course of film shooting. A resolution was then taken not to allow film shooting in the panchayat office anymore. When Almeida was cornered over the issue of garbage, he said three sites were identified to set up a treatment plant but declined to elaborate on it. Naik charged the deputy sarpanch of fooling the people with regard to plastic collection when actually plastic was just being collected and dumped and not being sent for recycling. Almeida on being questioned about the panchayat ground said that there were no much funds left for taking up the beautification of the ground and so the project has been kept in abeyance. ---------------------------------------- COMMENTS: The Gaumvaddi residents will continue to follow up the matter with the concerned authorities until it is solved. At the gram sabha meeting, Savio Almeida agreed to write a letter to the Police Inspector of Anjuna Police Station requesting him to stop work at the site. The letter was collected from the panchayat this morning and delivered to the Police Station for their action. Moi-mogan, Domnic Fernandes Gaumvaddi, Anjuna Mob: 8805237604