With borewells stopped, Kesarval fount springs back to life

KESARVAL/ QUELOSSIM: Many springs dry up due to developmental activities in their periphery. But one of Goa’s most popular springs, Kesarval near Verna, is gushing again after more than a decade and attracting a steady stream of visitors to the scenic spot.

The spring, nestled in a green valley barely 300 metres off National Highway 66, is gushing again and serves as a stark contrast to the silence that saddened visitors for many years. Revellers who enjoy the outdoors can once again relax and soak in the tranquil ambience of the spring.

It is difficult to understand that this buzzing picnic spot was abandoned for over a decade after it dried up due to all the development around it.

“Villagers are happy to see the flow restored after many years and visitors are happily back,” Lopinho Xavier, local panch and chairman of Quelossim biodiversity management committee said.

The renewed flow seems to have come at the right time with the state experiencing a particularly scorching summer compounded by a delayed monsoon. Xavier, who had opposed the digging of a borewell near the spring with other concerned locals a few years ago, said the spring rejuvenation could be due to supply of raw water for industries up on the plateau at Verna.

Government officials also concede that utilisation of more raw water for production instead of groundwater, and a few initiatives by industrial units for rain water harvesting on the Verna plateau, may also have re-energised the natural spring.

“Since 2010, the water resources department (WRD) has denied permission to dig borewells in the Verna industrial estate,” Rajan Kambli, ground water officer (South Goa), WRD said. The department has also started supplying raw water to 400-odd industries over the last few years at Verna, after several units resorted to sourcing groundwater through borewells.

“We are supplying 10 MLD raw water to the Goa Industrial Development Corporation at Verna, and 10MLD each to Zuari and the PWD treatment plant at Cansaulim,” Krishnakant Patil, superintending engineer PWD said.

While in a new trend, picnickers prefer riverside spots and bigger water bodies instead of bubbling springs, Kesarval offers a quiet and scenic ambience for relaxation. But the discerning among them are concerned about the lack of civic sense and rowdy tendencies among visitors at this most popular spring.

“It is a delight to bathe here and relax in this scenic valley. But seeing the litter and filth around, one is greatly disappointed by the callous attitude of the picnickers,” Marian Crasto, a visitor, said.