OFCs meant to go underground, but firms still lay them overhead

Optical fibre cables (OFC) continue to be an eyesore even on TenderSURE roads, by remaining overhead though these cables were supposed to go underground, beneath the pavements.
TenderSURE roads were planned in a manner that all utilities are shifted beneath the pavement. BBMP has laid ducts and chambers for these cables on TenderSURE roads, but they have not been used so far.

When Chief Minister Siddaramaiah was inaugurating five TenderSURE roads early this week, five youths were laying overhead cables at the junction of Residency Road and St Mark’s Road, where the TenderSURE works have been completed.

Sources in BBMP said they had directed the telecom firms at a meeting to shift the OFCs. The companies had sought one-year time to shift them, they said.

Engineer-in-chief of BBMP M R Venkatesh said the Palike was not insisting that OFCs be shifted from overhead to underground for the time being, because abrupt removal of cables would disrupt information and communication services.

“There are many important offices, which will be badly affected. Take for instance, Reserve Bank of India and the police headquarters on Nrupathunga Road.

They depend on the OFCs very much. The telecom firms have sought some time to lay them underground,” said Venkatesh.

One of the reasons for the reluctance of the telecom companies is that the OFC-laying fee on TenderSURE was almost double of what the Palike charges for normal roads.

A Palike engineer said, “The fee for laying cables on normal roads is Rs 850 per running metre, whereas on TenderSURE Roads, the fee is Rs 1,500.”

He said the Palike had previously proposed to collect Rs 3,000 per running metre as OFC laying charges on TenderSURE roads, but could not implement it due to pressure from the companies.