The National Institute of Oceanograpy: Home of Dung-Chow-Pong?
 

National Institiute of Oceanography (NIO),
Dona Paula, Goa, India
EPABX: 91(0832)-2450450
Grams : Oceanology, Panjim
Fax: 91(0832)-2450602 & 2450603
E-mail: ocean@darya.nio.org


At the Third World Water Forum held in Kyoto, Shiga and Osaka Japan between March 16-23, 2003 - a prominent 3 hour session of dialogue between the Ocean and the Fresh Water Communities was held on March 17.

In attendance as one of the keynote speakers was Dr. S.R. Shetye of the National Institute of Oceanography which occupies a most picturesque part of Dona Paula, Goa, India.

Minutes before Dr. Shetye presented, "FreshWater management Actions on land" were discussed at the forum.

The aim of the forum apparently was to spark  "future collaboration between the fresh water community and oceans community".

Having accepted that as a very positive development for Goa, India and the world, we at TGF are distressed at this item in the Independent Goan Observer (excerpt attached at the foot of this post)

From the Independent Goan Observer, we now learn that:

1. The National Institute of Oceanography (NIO) has been identified as the source of contamination of the water supply in Dona Paula.

2. The NIO has been continually adding new structures in its residential complex at Dona Paula but has done nothing to expand the septic tank which was built 30+ years ago when the NIO moved into Goa.

3. Twice in recent months, the sewage pipe was damaged but the NIO did NOT bother to alert either the Public Works department or the Department of Public Health.

4. On this occasion the sewage overflow was so overwhelming that it spread beyond the compound wall and inundated the equally ancient water pipeline.

5. The stop-gap measures put in place are unlikely to prevent the water supply from being contaminated once again.

6. In the Dona Paula contamination incident Goan Observer was the first to inform both the concerned officer and the Mayor of Panjim about the contamination.

There are other issues including the rank corruption which has infiltrated Goa over the past 4 decades, and the total impotence of the Goan populace to demand better. Those we shall examine at a more later date.

IF THE ABOVE quoted 6 points are INDEED TRUE, we have the following queries:

1. Did the NIO obtain the requisite Occupancy Certificates for the buildings it built in Dona Paula with or without the mandatory Health Department clearances?  If the mandatory Health Department clearance were obtained, were on site Inspections held prior to certification ? If such Inspections indeed were conducted, who conducted them & are the inspection reports available for inspection?

2. Where have the alleged "mainstream" journalists been hiding?

3. Now that Rajan Narayan of the Goan Observer has put this "matter" in front of the Goan noses (no pun intended), what are the Goan journos going to do about it? .... besides playing Raul (;-)

4. Who is responsible for this mess, and when will someone be held accountable for this disgraceful and criminal contamination of the Goa water supply.

5. Does Goa need another "epidemic of Infectious Hepatitis" before the authorities LIBERATE Goans from this Dung Chow Pong?!

TGF
April 9, 2005

*****

From The Independent Goan Observer

foul water

And a few stray thoughts on the contamination of water supply in Dona Paula. The Public Works Department (PWD), thanks to some prodding from the Governor’s Officer on Special Duty, has worked overtime and located the source of the contamination. Though the source of the contamination, the National Institute of Oceanography (NIO) has been identified, little or nothing has been done to penalise the culprit. The NIO septic tank is over 30 years old. It has not been expanded even though the NIO has been continually adding new structures in its residential complex at Dona Paula. Even at the time of writing the NIO is in the process of completing a new student’s hostel in the residential complex. I understand that twice since the construction of the hostel, the sewage pipe was damaged. Even though the latest incident took place a week ago, the NIO did not inform either the PWD or the health authorities. This is not the first time that the NIO soak pit has overflowed. Except that this time around the sewage overflow was so overwhelming that it spread beyond the compound wall and inundated the equally ancient water pipeline. As a stop-gap measure the damaged section of the pipeline has been replaced by a temporary PVC pipeline. A trench has also been dug to replace the affected section of the old pipeline. But both the temporary PVC pipeline and the proposed section of the new pipeline are within three metres of the soak pit. So unless something is done to the perpetually leaking soak pit the water supply is likely to contaminated once again.

soak pits

There is a larger issue that has to be addressed. I understand from Health Department officials that it is mandatory for builders to get clearance from the Health Officer before a civic body or a panchayat grants an occupancy certificate to both residential and business premises. I discovered to my shock and dismay that 90 percent of both residential and commercial buildings in Panaji and indeed all over Goa were granted occupancy certificates without the mandatory Health Department clearance. In theory and on paper there are explicit and detailed guidelines on the building of soak pits. The guidelines specify that the capacity of the soak pit taking into consideration the number of residential or business premises located in each building. But apparently these guidelines have not been enforced. It is obviously in the greedy builder’s interest to build miniature soak pits which are totally inadequate to deal with the human sewage generated.

prevention

Apparently it was only very recently that the Chief Officers of the civic bodies have been directed to survey all the soak pits in Municipal areas and compel builders and housing societies to update the soak pits. The Chief Officers have also been directed to conduct periodic inspections to check the state of the soak pit. It is not as though it is only individual residents or small builders who blatantly violate mandatory requirements for construction of residential and business premises. There have been reports of soak pits overflowing as in the case of the prestigious building complex put up by Landscape Builders at Campal. Come the monsoon and the situation will get much worse. If the government wants to pre-empt outbreaks of epidemics it should get every building particularly in urban areas inspected by the Health Department and discontinue water supply to buildings which have been granted occupancy certificates without the mandatory clearance from the Health Department. Even at the risk that this might only intensify the corruption in the Health Department. What is appalling about the repeated contamination of water supply is the utter and total lack of coordination between the public works department, the health department, the various licensing authorities like the Town and Country Planning department, the PDAs and the Panchayats. For instance in the Dona Paula contamination incident Goan Observer was the first to inform both the concerned officer and the Mayor of Panjim about the contamination.

Excerpted for Materia Medica from The Goan Observer:
http://www.goanobserver.com/members/straythoughts.htm
Published: April 9, 2005

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