Ponda: The landslide at Kerye, Khandepar, which has caused inconvenience to the several thousand travelers and the traders’ community in Ponda, could have been avoided, if Public Works Department had to listen to the people.
Moreover, what is painful is that MGP leader Ketan Bhatikar, whose party has PWD portfolio, has claimed the landslide as “natural disaster” while it is a man made calamity.
Ponda based social activists Sandeep Parkar and Rockey Dias had took up the issue about crumbling walls along the road side at Kerye, Khandepar, two days before the actual incident.
“The hill along the road has been vertically cut up to 25-30 metres which is not the right way to do it. The hill comprises of soft soil, which would not withstand such kind of cutting. It was bound to fall,” said Parkar, who had taken up the issue even in the media.
Parkar had recommended that the dangerous area where landslide is possible should be illuminated so that if it comes down crumbling in the night, there should not be any casualty.
He had also said that two traffic policemen should be posted either side so that in case of landslide the vehicles can be diverted.
He had posted it on Facebook and also tagged the relevant people.
But landslide happened and people were put to inconvenience for more than 8 days. Parkar says that he had requested Sesa Goa to provide their machinery to remove the debris from the road immediately, which the company had agreed but government didn’t permit it prolonging the two day long work to eight days.
The closure of the road has adversely affected Ponda market which was getting supplies from the Belgaum. Parkar said that the market got affected badly as there was no supplies. The economic loss faced by business community and also problems faced by locals were immense.
What was more painful for Parkar and people who had predicted this calamity was the statement by Ketan Bhatikar to please Sudin Dhavalikar in which he said that the landslide was natural calamity.
“It is not natural calamity. It is a man made disaster and people should be held responsible for that,” he said.
