Cables pose a threat to scooterists and walkers
They travel from tree to tree, forming U-like shapes wherever they slump. To an approaching motorcyclist, they might appear like a hangman’s rope that is black and thinner. They are almost as dangerous.
On solitary trees, they form numerous coils. It’s hard to tell where a coil, black or orange, begins and ends. Clunky cylindrical and tablet-like objects dangle from the same trees.
Some disappear into bushes; others into the ground. One doesn’t know whether they begin or end there.
Cables hanging over Magrath Road, central Bengaluru, pose a big danger to pedestrians and two-wheeler riders. They are a combination of electricity, telephone and television wires.
Lalit Sareene, manager of Home Stop, a showroom opposite Garuda mall, informed The Observer: “They cause difficulty for our customers. There has been no action from authorities concerned. Last month, I saw a short-circuit in the wires. It’s a major safety issue.”
Imran, a manager with Delsey India, a company that has an office on the road, said: “It’s a major inconvenience for our customers as they have to negotiate these while coming to our shop. We complained about the issue to the management of our building last month.”
Taruni Pani, a pedestrian who uses the road, said nothing has changed in two years. “The situation has been the same. These hanging wires are dangerous, especially during the rainy season.”
“These wires should be inside. An agglomeration of wires hangs from trees on both sides of the road. This is not good for the trees. Even they are living beings,” said R. Lokesh, security supervisor with Eagle Eye.
A short-circuit can damage appliances, Lokesh said. “The contractor must erect a pole and tie these cables to it.”
According to Ankit, a student of NIFT, Hyderabad, who was in Bengaluru for a short visit, “I have not seen such a thing in Hyderabad or Kolkata, the city I come from. These wires should run from pole to pole or be put underground.”
“Bescom has been trying to fix these wires for four years. Once the helmet of a bike rider got stuck in these cables. Luckily, he escaped without any injuries,” said Sundar Poojary, the owner of a paan shop, who every day sees people inconvenienced.
The BBMP promised to address the problem of optical fibre cables hindering the movement of pedestrians and vehicles.
“BBMP is planning to lay all the OFCs underground. As part of this, works is already going on in Kasturba Road, Church Street and Commercial Street. After this, we will covering Magrath Road as well,” L. Suresh, public relations officer, BBMP, informed The Observer.
BSNL General Manager, Karnataka, Gubbi Ramachandra Ravi made a similar promise: “We will look into the matter. We will send our technical staff and get the problem fixed very soon.”
Jayanthi, GM, customer relations, Bescom, informed The Observer: “This is a wider issue and we are trying to fix such problems across the city at the earliest.”