Panaji smart city seeks extension for sewerage works completion

Panaji: Imagine Panaji Smart City Development Limited will seek more time from the high court of Bombay at Goa to complete the pending sewerage works, particularly at the Taad Maad junction, said IPSCDL managing director and chief executive officer Sanjit Rodrigues.
Rodrigues said that work of laying the final stretch of the sewerage line remains to be completed, but he could not give a definite timeline for its completion.
“Work at Taad Maad is ongoing, though we said that we would complete it on March 31. We will need more time because of the complexities of the work, which is going on in terms of engineering, in terms of technology, and the sheer depth at which we work. I have not yet worked out the deadline for the Taad Maad junction,” said Rodrigues.
He said that 90% of all the Smart City Mission works in the state capital have been completed and that he is satisfied with the quality of the work. He said that the contractors and engineers encountered a lot of hindrances and challenges while trying to complete the works.
Giving reporters an update on the pending works, Rodrigues said that of 200m of sewerage line that was pending, 170m was completed. He said that 30m remains to be laid, with work going on round the clock.
“The challenges we faced here are the depth and the fact that the main sewage line that is running parallel has to remain functional. I have to review the work and see whatever time it requires. Now, it will be more realistic. Once the Taad Maad junction is complete, we will migrate the entire sewerage to the new line,” said Rodrigues.
He said that borewells have been laid at Taad Maad to dewater the trenches, which are at a depth of 12m. He also said that work at Rua De Ourem could not be completed.
“We were supposed to complete Rua De Ourem, but again there was a problem because there was a pumping line that was supposed to come up. This pipeline was tendered by PWD three times, and there have been no takers. The concrete cannot be laid until the pipeline comes in,” said Rodrigues.
Despite these delays, Rodrigues insisted that the Smart City mission has not “missed any deadline”.
“Except for the Taad Maad stretch, we have completed every single sewerage work, every single road work as per the affidavit filed by the court. No road closure, open trenching, barricading is going on in Panaji, and if any such activity is seen, it is not of the Smart City Mission. Almost 90% of work has been completed in the city. I stand by the quality, and we have a five-year warranty,” said Rodrigues.
When asked about the inconvenience caused to motorists, Rodrigues said, “I don’t agree.”
“The work that we are doing is for the next 50 years. There will be no reason to dig these roads for the next 50 years. In 50 years, you will have problems again when the pipe has to be replaced with a bigger one,” he said.

‘Ribandar-Chorao ferry ramp complete’
Panaji: The ferry ramp for the Ribandar-Chorao Roll-on Roll-off ferry is complete and awaiting trails by the river navigation department, said Imagine Panaji Smart City Development Limited managing director Sanjit Rodrigues. He added that the final bit of concrete that is below the water level was laid on March 31 at midnight at peak low tide.
“As far as the Ribandar ferry ramp is concerned, we have completed the ramp and clearing of debris is going on. We will hand over the ramp to the RND for the Ro-Ro service. We had to wait for the tides to be at the lowest to complete the work. The RND will have to run trials for the Ro-Ro ferry and they are waiting for the ferry to arrive,” said Rodrigues.