NGO opens IFFI's can of worms

The People's Movement for Civic Action (PMCA), a Goa-based non-governmental organisation, has uncovered a can of worms hidden away in the 36th edition of the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) held in 2005.

According to the documents, obtained by PMCA under the Right to Information Act, pertaining to the management, collection and disposal of waste generated during the IFFI 2005, the Wizcraft International Entertainment Private Limited, a Mumbai-based event management company, was paid Rs 9,80,605, towards waste management.

Investigations have revealed that while the Wizcraft International was paid the money, it was the Panaji Municipal Corporation, which did the work.

Patricia Pinto of PMCA told Business Standard, "We are extremely shocked to learn that PMC actually carried out the work of collection and disposal of waste, while the Entertainment Society of Goa (ESG) made payments to Wizcraft for the same. This appears to be a gross irregularity committed by the ESG."

As per the contract agreement between Wizcraft and ESG, the former would provide adequate dustbins to be placed near festival venues and the adjoining areas.

The agreement stipulated that there should be 70 dustbins, including 10 covered ones, and 60 drum bins. The total expenditure for these came to Rs 55,000. What is shocking is that CCP did not sell or provide any bins to ESG and as such no amount was collected from Wizcraft towards the same.

But, in the letter No IFFI/2005-06/1-03, dated November 15, 2005, from the chief executive officer and nodal officer of the IFFI addressed to the commissioner, PMC, has a remark by then commissioner Sanjit Rodrigues "Please do today itself", and a request for suitably sized dustbins in appropriate quantity to be placed at various sites along the festival venues.

Potential sites were supposed to be indicated by the personnel of Wizcraft International.

As per the contract with Wizcraft, Rs 3.65 lakh was paid to Wizcraft for collection of garbage at pre-determined locations. The transportation of segregated garbage""both wet and dry""to a landfill as well as transportation of plastic bottles to a crushing plant was to be done by Wizcraft.

The contract clearly mentions that the waste management for IFFI 2005 was entrusted to the event management agency, Wizcraft International Entertainment Private Limited as a tendered item. However PMC was collecting the waste from the location points and no amount was charged for the service rendered.

The contract also stipulated that the Wizcraft International should engage the services of house-keeping and conservancy agency empanelled by the ESG and monitor the manpower deployment in such a way as to meet necessary standards of decent conservancy and solid waste management.

To achieve this, Wizcraft was paid the following amounts: Rs 1,20,700 for engaging labour at the Kala Academy; Rs 1,02, 375 for covering Corniche Road (Jetty to Kala); Rs 24,000 for Children's Park; and Rs 1,89,000 for undertaking work at the Caranzalem beach screening site.

But instead of the Wizcraft International spending the money it was PMC, which had to endure extra cost with amount of expenditure incurred on staff and labour being in the range of Rs 1,02,971 during the IFFI 2005, and to give CCP credit, no amount is pending towards the payment to be made to the workers during IFFI 2005 including overtime.

While ESG is trying to avoid the embarrassment over this revelation by stating that Wizcraft may have subcontracted the work, PMC is categorical in their statement that they did not receive any amount towards garbage management from ESG or Wizcraft International.

PMCA has asked the chief secretary and the chairman of ESG as to what arrangements have been made for the management and disposal of waste during the IFFI 2006.

Patricia said, "The chief secretary is fully aware that Panaji is already overburdened and PMC is working beyond its capacity to deal with the waste generated by hotels in the capital.