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Streetlights in Cantt area A glowing danger
The Secunderabad Cantonment Board (SCB) on an average received 40-60 complaints pertaining to street lights every day but, for the last few days, the SCB call centre is flooded with over 100 complaints from the cantonment residents.
Secunderabad: The Secunderabad Cantonment Board (SCB) on an average received 40-60 complaints pertaining to street lights every day but, for the last few days, the SCB call centre is flooded with over 100 complaints from the cantonment residents.
Heavy rains that lashed city in the past few days took a toll on the street lights in the cantonment. There are 16,000 poles in the cantonment and several especially, in low lying areas are battered and need immediate repair. Savan Kumar, assistant engineer of Water and Street light department said, “After rains we always receive complaints but this time around the number of complaints doubled. We engaged extra teams to manage the situation.”
Catch-22 situation
The SCB is caught in a catch-22 situation, as the workers in some areas could not start the repair works as it was dangerous to their lives. Savan Kumar said, “Workers were not allowed to climb poles but transmission had to be uninterrupted. In extreme cases, cranes are put into service but it is not possible every time.”
An employee at the call centre said, “convincing irate consumers is difficult and many refuse to understand that workers cannot climb the poles as their lives would be in danger. We somehow manage and wait till the rain subsides and water recedes.”
In several low-lying colonies such as Sowjanya Colony, Indian Airlines Colony, Srinivas Nagar, the street lights get badly affected after rains. The SCB only maintains the street lights in the cantonment and the complaints pertaining to high-tension and low-tension lines are diverted to Telangana State Southern Power Distribution Company limited (TSSPDCL). The maintenance of street lights in the cantonment is outsourced to B V Sayanna & Sons.
The common complaints are regarding non-functioning of street lights, that are a result of tree felling, water logging, hanging of poles and wires and breakdown of poles. An official said that work on setting up of new poles usually is taken up only in December and during summer. In certain areas such as Macha Bolarum and Alwal anti-social elements damage street lights. In places such as graveyards, many drunkards and drug peddlers damage street lights on purpose.
