Panaji: After the Goa Waste Management Corporation (GWMC) suspended wet waste collection from six Tiswadi panchayats and the Mapusa and Mormugao municipalities on Monday, the local bodies said they have been pushed into a dire situation, with untreated waste piling up and fears of stench and unhygienic conditions growing by the day.The affected panchayats are Santa Cruz, Merces, Chimbel, Curca-Bambolim, Old Goa and Corlim, along with the two municipalities.GWMC managing director Harish Adconkar said the suspension follows a minor incident at the Saligao waste treatment plant that led to repairs on the biodigester. To avoid overburdening the facility until the work is completed, GWMC has reduced the plant’s operations to about 80% capacity and paused wet waste collection from eight of the 32 local bodies that normally send waste to Saligao.“The biodigester has come up for repairs, and it is functioning at 110 tonnes capacity out of its 150 tonnes capacity. We are working on a strict timeline, and the repairs are expected to be completed within the 25 days given,” Adconkar said. He added that panchayats have been asked to use organic composting methods in the interim, noting that many stopped composting locally after Saligao began accepting their wet waste. “We are taking in waste normally from 32 local bodies, doing as much as possible from our end to treat waste,” he said.Old Goa sarpanch Medha Parvatkar said the panchayat was initially told collection would be suspended for 10 days, but later received an intimation extending the period to 25 days, deepening concern.“We have given the contract for waste collection in the panchayat to a contractor. So far, he is managing by keeping the collected waste inside our material recovery facility shed, as we have been instructed that the waste has to be managed within our jurisdiction. But I do not know how much longer we can manage,” Parvatkar said. She added that the notice came too late to arrange alternatives and that Old Goa’s tourist activity and hotels generate larger quantities of wet waste.Merces sarpanch Sushant Govekar said the panchayat has urged officials to resume collection for treatment at Saligao within 15 days to prevent the situation from worsening.“We are already seeing people throwing their waste in open areas. Not collecting waste for 25 days for treatment is a major headache for us,” Govekar said. He noted that while some residents with land can compost, many residential complexes in the panchayat cannot. “We were given only three days’ notice for suspension of wet waste collection. This will create unhygienic conditions soon for us,” he said.
