Team Herald
PANJIM: The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) has asked the State government to look into the issues raised by the Goa Forward Party to the mismanagement of Smart City works in the capital city.
On June 12 this year, Goa Forward Party president and MLA Vijai Sardesai had written a letter to the prime Minister’s Office (PMO), New Delhi, alleging corruption and substandard work and to order a comprehensive audit of the Smart City works undertaken in Panjim, encompassing financial, quality and safety aspects.
Sardesai in his letter had stated that Panjim city had degenerated because of haphazard and unplanned construction work in the process of transforming Panjim into a Smart City. The situation had become a source of continuous distress for local residents of the Panjim.
Sardesai had stated that despite a substantial fund allocation of approximately Rs 1,200 crore, the execution of the project had been fraught with myriad issues, leading to widespread disillusionment, frustration and indignation among the residents.
On June 19, the PMO forwarded the letter to the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (Smart Cities-I Section). Which had now written to the Secretary (urban Development), Goa government to look into the matter and take action as deemed appropriate into it and to inform the petitioner.
Reaction to it, the GFP on Monday stated that there was complete failure of proper project management and roads were dug four times in Panjim to lay utility cables and for construction of cross drainages. This caused flooding in Panjim during rains. Also the works were carried out by Imagine Panaji Smart City Development Ltd, PWD and Goa State Urban Development Agency and there was no one agency coordinating the works.