OFCs leave roads in a mess at Whitefield

The residents of Whitefield might be facing a lot of hiccups, but the bane of their lives is optical fibre cable (OFC) service providers digging up roads, despite the BBMP’s blanket ban.

The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike has swung into action against OFC service providers digging up roads without prior permission, but the problem persists in many areas of Mahadevapura, especially in Whitefield in the East Bengaluru region.

Here, the residents wake up to dug-up roads that looked normal the previous day. Now, they are clueless about how to chart their future path.

The EPIP zone in Whitefield is one such area that has borne the OFC brunt. “Four days ago, when digging began on one of the roads, I reported the matter immediately to the BBMP. After the Palike officials interfered, the OFC contractor cleared the area. But the activity resumed the following day at the same spot. They finished the work and left the damaged road as it is,” said Akshay Kumar, a corporate professional in the area.

In a similar incident, the residents of one of the areas in Hagadur ward alerted the BBMP when illegal cable-digging was going on at midnight. The spot was cleared immediately.

“The roads that we see one day do not remain the same. The contractors get them dug up during the night. When we demand the permission letter, they don’t produce it. They merely claim they have the required permission,” a resident of Hagadur said.

Similar cases were reported from Seegehalli near KR Puram, Dinnur near Hebbal, Kundanahalli road, Marathahalli main road and other parts of Whitefield.

BBMP chief engineer G Parameshwariah said: “Heavy penalties will be imposed by the government on those laying cables or digging roads without permission. We are attending to all the cases that are reported to us. It is difficult to fix accountability on unauthorised contractors. The BBMP officials have been asked to verify the authenticity of the contractors.”