POLITICAL INSTABILITY IN PONDA GIVES RISE IN GARBAGE DUMPS

PONDA: Wrecked by political instability in the city municipal council, the poll-bound Ponda continues to grapple with the garbage problem which threatens to get out of hand. Heaps of waste get accumulated at several spots in the city while councillors are busy with toppling games. The last ouster claimed the scalp of Mr Pradeep N Naik on 12th October.

While citizens complained that the waste dumped in PMC bins is not collected regularly causing stench and health hazards, former PMC chairpersons maintained that during their tenures they did their best in disposing of the garbage despite the apathy of former councillors towards the menace.

When contacted on their measures to collect and dispose of garbage, the former chairpersons had their explanations on the steps adopted by them.

Mr Pradeep Naik, who headed the PMC from May 4, 2010 to October 12, 2010, said even though the city did not have a waste disposal site he managed to dispose of the garbage. “The city is facing a problem ever since the owner of Pascoal farm refused to allow the PMC to dump its waste in his backyard. But I came up with a temporary solution, despite there being no support from other councillors,’’ he claimed.

Mr Shailendra Sinkre, who was the PMC chief from July 7, 2009 to April 20, 2010 and predecessor of Mr Pradeep Naik, said that during his tenure the PMC paid the owner of Pascoal Farm Rs 55,000 per month to allow the PMC to dump the garbage in his backyard.

A former chairperson who did not want to be named said the councillors had not been serious in tackling the menace. “As and when the problem of garbage disposal cropped up, councillors and officials thought that it was the responsibility of the chairperson, which is not correct,’’ he observed.

Mr Venkatesh Naik, who headed the PMC from March 24, 2009 to June 24, 2009 without the support of the local MLA and Home Minister, Mr Ravi Naik, did the convenient thing of digging pits behind the crematorium where the garbage was buried. But this, at best was a temporary arrangement. He later succeeded in convincing a citizen in accepting the waste in his yard.

Mr Sanjay M Naik, who was the Ponda civic body chief from February 7, 2008 to March 10 2009, claimed that he had dumped the waste in his own property and covered it with mud in order to keep the city clean.

With chairpersons not sure of remaining in the chair and councillors not applying their mind to the issue, a solution for waste treatment and disposal seems more distant than ever before. (NT)