Saligao plant stinks of corruption? Even before the garbage plant at Saligao comes up, there is a whiff or a scandal in the air. SURAJ NANDREKAR sniffs around and finds that the plant will cost Rs 400 crore and not Rs 146 crore that the government will have you believe.
16 Aug, 2015, 07:06AM IST [image: Saligao plant stinks of corruption?] A- A+ Share on facebook <http://www.heraldgoa.in/details.php?n_id=92433#> Share on twitter <http://www.heraldgoa.in/details.php?n_id=92433#> Share on google_plusone_share <http://www.heraldgoa.in/details.php?n_id=92433#> Share on pinterest_share <http://www.heraldgoa.in/details.php?n_id=92433#> More Sharing Services <http://www.heraldgoa.in/details.php?n_id=92433#>0 <http://www.heraldgoa.in/details.php?n_id=92433#> It took a delegation of 30 members visiting several European countries to finalise the technique and machinery for the garbage treatment of a small State like Goa with a population of just 15 lakh. Not only were crores of rupees spent on the Europe junket, the machinery which has been finalised will cost the State hundreds of crores of rupees more than what has been proclaimed by the agencies involved and the politicians. That’s the money part. The project itself has run into a rough weather with several illegalities pointed out by activists and NGOs. Goa State Infrastructure Development Corporation (GSIDC), which has undertaken the project, has maintained that the plant will cost Rs 146 cr but the rest has not been explained to the people. Herald investigations have revealed that the plant will cost the State nearly Rs 400 cr after 10 years, when the government finished paying SWC that has been given the contract on a Design Build Finance and Operate (DBFO) basis and the entire Rs 146 cr has been invested by the promoter. However, this Rs 146 cr will have to be paid by the State as Gross Annual Operations Support Grant in equal installments of Rs 29.90 cr annually for the next 10 years as the amount has to be paid back to the promoters with interest, which comes out to Rs 299 cr in 10 years, more than double the amount invested. Secondly, the State will pay the promoters Rs 1562 per tonne of waste handled at the site, which according to official calculations comes to Rs 9 crore annually, which would total to Rs 90 cr at the end of 10 years. So at the end of 10 years, the State would actually have paid the promoters an amount of Rs 389 cr, so why is the government calling it a Rs 146 cr plant and not Rs 389 cr plant? Also, GSIDC has not taken any corporate guarantee from SWC for ensuring successful application of the technology, viability and successful run, which are mandatory for all projects. Besides this, Goa Foundation has moved the National Green Tribunal (NGT) on environmental non-compliances before commencing the projects. “These are very high costs as there are similar sized projects which cost must less, and implement effective waste management and achieve compliance. These projects have composting process with landfill of rejects. They are not based on waste to energy as it is sought to be done in Goa,” says Claude Alvares of Goa Foundation. He says GSIDC by paying Rs 1562 per tonne of garbage solely for processing and disposal plus an annual grant for reimbursement of capital cost is obviously doing the agency a favour at public expense. Investigations have also revealed that the statutory norms of having an Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) and public hearing for Environment Clearance were also not followed. NEERI was simply recruited to do a post-facto EIA. Alvares says that the work order has been given to SWC Ventures, which has no previous experience or performance history. “There is no mention of the missing technical qualification being met through some other agency, by a joint venture, and hence the basis or criteria chosen for GSIDC’s selection of this party are unknown,” he said. Alvares also says it is a myth that the plant will produce 1 MW of power as there is no clarity on the amount power going to be generated. “The Goa State Pollution Control Board has informed us that it has cleared a 0.5 MW plant that is half the capacity given in work order. So where is the question of 1 MW power generation?” he asks. Further, says he, to produce 1 MW of power the Union Ministry of MNRE has stated that a minimum of 12000m3 of gas is required for 1 MW of power generation. “At present we can hardly get 100 tonnes per day of mixed waste and through which we can produce only 0.76 MW of power. So do not be surprised if waste will be imported from outside Goa to keep the plant running,” he cautions. Alvares questioned as to why the government did not appoint a consultant to analyse the proposals and give recommendations, which is a standard procedure in matters of this kind. Alvares has blamed the former chief minister for all the illegalities. “From file notings, all the principal decisions to waive procedures were taken by the then chief minister,” he said. http://www.heraldgoa.in/details.php?n_id=92433 -- P +91-832-2409490 M 9822122436 Twitter: @fn Facebook: fredericknoronha Goa,1556 Shared Content at archive.org https://archive.org/details/goa1556 -- -- Saligao-Net is at http://groups.google.com/group/saligao-net To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe email [email protected] --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Saligao-Net" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
