KATHMANDU, AUG 08 -
Although the government has been ‘successful’ so far in its road expansion drive, officials have failed to properly account for the utility poles lining the streets. Concerned authorities seem to be busy blaming each other for the lack of will to relocate and properly implant these electricity and telephone poles.
The roadside poles, owned by the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) and the Nepal Telecom (NT), need to be shifted in coordination with the Kathmandu Valley Town Development Implementation Committee (KVTDIC), after space is allocated for their relocation now that the roads are being expanded.
According to KVTDIC chief Bhai Kaji Tiwari, the NEA and the NT have not been carrying out their works efficiently to shift the poles and manage the wiring system.
“The authorities who own the poles have been very slow with their work and have not been carrying it out properly. It’s a pity that they have not been able to manage the wires and poles despite our regular requests,” said Tiwari.
However, NEA officials claim that most of the expanded areas don’t have a clear line of sight to relocate the poles to.
“Most of the expanded roads aren’t complete and many structures are still standing. It’s up to the KVTDIC to provide us with space to relocate the poles. We have carried out a survey in most places and have completed work on clear areas,” said NEA Spokesperson Chiranjibi Sharma. “Another problem is locals who seem to think the poles are unsafe and discourage us from planting them.”
NEA Ratnapark Central chief Bhanubhakta Bhattarai said that changing the existing wiring is a difficult and time consuming task.
“All the old wiring has running electricity. To replace it with a new system, we have to disrupt supply and set up an optional line to continue providing electricity to consumers. We normally do this during load-shedding hours and at night. We have completed work in most major areas where road expansion has been over. But we cannot even conduct surveys in places where road expansion is incomplete,” said Bhattarai.
NT Regional Director Madhusudan Karmacharya confirmed the relocation of poles and wire management along 11 major routes that have already been expanded and that others are in the process of completion.
“Our work is in final stages. As soon as the pavements are complete and the area levelled, we will complete the relocation of poles and wiring in all places,” said Karmacharya, adding that they were working more on underground telephone wiring.
“We, having finished most of the primary wiring, have been asked by the government for secondary wiring in many areas,” said Karmacharya.
However, Tiwari claimed that the NEA and NT officials have not completed relocation and wiring.
“They have started work in most areas but only a few places have been complete. They are still pulling wires from existing poles without shifting them in places like Anamnagar. Elsewhere, they are concealing and anchoring poles with the old wiring system. Every meeting, they give us positive responses about completing the work urgently but it is due to a lack of commitment that they haven’t been able to complete the tasks,” said Tiwari.
Authorities meet every two weeks at the Prime Minister’s Office to recount and resolve problems related to road infrastructure. The NEA and NT have both put to tender the jobs to relocate the utility poles.
Source: http://www.ekantipur.com/2012/08/08/capital/utility-poles-still-stand-in-way-of-road-expansion/358424/
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