MAPUSA
Mounting garbage and uncollected trash along highways across Goa sparked concern in the Goa Legislative Assembly, with Vijai Sardesai accusing the government of failing to enforce contractual obligations against a private firm tasked with highway waste collection.
Raising the issue in the House, Sardesai said the State had awarded a five-year contract worth over Rs 15 crore to M/s. Karnataka Commercial and Industrial Corporation Private Limited (KCIC Pvt Ltd) to collect garbage along highways.
However, he alleged that the company failed to carry out the work effectively, leading to garbage piling up and creating anxiety among residents over sanitation and public health.
According to Sardesai, the contractor operated with insufficient staff and frequently failed to collect garbage bags on the same day, allowing waste to accumulate along major roads. He said the government had issued at least two notices to the company over its poor performance.
Sardesai further pointed out that the tender conditions clearly stated that if the contractor failed to perform satisfactorily for three consecutive months, the contract could be terminated. “Despite repeated lapses, the government did not terminate the contract midway. Instead, the company was allowed to continue for the full five-year period,” he said.
He alleged that the government paid the firm Rs 13.75 crore out of the Rs 15 crore tender amount despite the alleged poor performance. “This issue is not only about garbage collection. It is about the image of our tourist State,” Sardesai said, adding that the situation reflected a clear failure of contract enforcement and oversight.
The Goa Forward Party legislator also questioned why the government had awarded the contract to a Karnataka-based company when local self-help groups were capable of handling such work.
Responding to the concerns, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant told the Assembly that the contract awarded to KCIC Pvt Ltd had been cancelled and the government was in the process of appointing another contractor.
Sawant said that in the interim, local contractors were being engaged on a patch-wise basis to clear garbage from highways. “The work requires mechanised systems and accountability, which is why a contractor is appointed,” he said.
The chief minister also informed the House that litigation involving the company was currently underway and assured that strict action would be taken against the contractor if warranted.
