Panji, Oct 1 (TNN): Show-cause notices issued in the past to the Goa medical college (GMC) and hospital at Bambolim, over its poor management of garbage, appear to have worked only in part as waste continues to be dumped in the open quarry adjacent to the medicine ward raising health risks.

While the notices-issued by the Corlim PHC under the Goa Public Health Act after a TOI photo in early 2012-led to GMC treating and incinerating its medical waste, the rest of the food, paper and plastic, unsegregated waste is dumped in the quarry and has become a foraging ground for cattle and ragpickers.

The owner of a gadda located just outside the compound wall said GMC authorities should not allow ragpickers inside the premises. "They spread garbage all over the place as they poke around for their precious plastic. It's a total mess and it is so unhygienic. The place stinks," he said.

While the Corporation of the City of Panaji (CCP) has deployed six of its labourers, whose salaries are paid by GMC, for collection and segregation of the wastes, the workers only collect the waste, said a GMC official.

The official said they have initiated efforts to solve the problem and the Goa State Infrastructure Development Corporation (GSIDC) is erecting a shed for the segregation of garbage.

"They could not segregate the waste so far as there was no place for them to sit and do their work," the official said.

Also, the subway outside the GMC premises, which is barely used, is also turning into a garbage dump. To make matters worse a sewage line passing through has also been opened.

Unaware of who has opened the sewage line, a GMC official said the institute does try to keep the subway clean as regularly as possible. The official stressed that the problem will be taken care of forever as the government plans to build a road through the subway. Gurudas Pilankar, who has recently taken charge as director of administration, said the GMC is working towards solving its garbage issue.