--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Posted by: nt <http://www.navhindtimes.in/author/nt/> February 9, 2016 in Commentary <http://www.navhindtimes.in/category/opinion/> *Cleaning Up St Inez Creek: Long Way To Go* In my letter dated November 29, 2015, I was a bit harsh on the status of the St Inez Creek and I may have appeared to be sarcastic about the work undertaken by the Panaji MLA and that of the Goa State Pollution Control Board. At the outset, I must confess that I am not undermining the hard work undertaken and I hope that we become successful in rejuvenating the creek soon. But as a scientist and after interacting with scientists, I wish to caution the MLA about being over enthusiastic about what appeared in The Navhind Times report on St Inez Creek. May I present some hard facts, not in order to criticise, but out of caution. Cat fish (or the so-called ‘thigur’) breeds in polluted waters. It is a sturdy and slippery fish (much more than ‘sangtam’) and can withstand depleted and variable oxygen levels. During my childhood, we used to catch these ‘thigurs’ mostly in the well-known ‘thigur baem,’ which used to be a freshwater well. It would take a few years for a ‘thigur’ to reach the size it appeared in the picture accompanying the report. The aeration experiment started only a few months back and, therefore, either the cat fish was already breeding in the creek before the aeration, or else it was planted there. Cat fish inhabits polluted water and hence finding one in the creek is no indication of reduction of levels of pollution. I am not trying to be cynical, but there is an English saying ‘One Swallow (bird) does not make a Summer.’ Similarly, one cat fish is not a reason for optimism. We have a long way to go and I and my friends will stand by the authorities and help them and the MLA in the hard work undertaken and vision to see the St Inez Creek being restored to its original glory. STEPHEN DIAS, Dona Paula
