Concern over phone lines damage during Internet cable-laying

By Our Staff Reporter

CHENNAI, JUNE 15. A recent breakdown in telephone lines and a similar case reported today have raised serious concerns about damages caused by laying Internet cables.

On Sunday, 5,000 lines attached to the Mambalam Telephone Exchange were affected while laying conduits for optical fibre cables (OFC) by a private Internet service provider. The Chennai Telephones restored connections with assistance from the firm, Reliance Infocom, by Wednesday.

But another 100 pair cable attached to the Mambalam Exchange was damaged at T.Nagar on Thursday night during operations by the same company, even as Reliance Infocom assured that precautions were being taken.

Officials said it was a minor fault, but are anxious that similar breakdowns due to OFC operations cannot be ruled out. According to them, the damage in the first case occurred just outside the Mambalam Telephone Exchange, resulting in the massive failure. ``The company could have approached us for advice before starting drilling here,'' an official said.

Telephone cables, long distance cables, trunk lines, five major cables of 1,200 pairs and long distance OFCs to Tidel Park, Mahabalipuram, Chengalpattu and Pondicherry were affected in the incident. Telephone connections to several parts of T.Nagar, Anna Salai, Venkatanarayana Road and Chamiers Road were also affected.

Reliance Infocom employs a modern trenchless drilling method - Horizontal Direct Drilling (HDD) - for laying conduits for OFCs. The firm also uses a scanning device to identify underground lines, but by its own accord, ``it is difficult to pinpoint the exact location of underground utilities like water pipelines, electricity cables and other communication cables.''

Company personnel said they were also consulting maps provided by the respective Government departments to identify underground cables and lines.

But they were not able to explain how their operations led to the breakdown despite the precautions taken.

The company said it has taken steps to safeguard against similar incidents and has decided to drill deeper than usual in order to avoid damages.

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Section  : Southern States
Previous : The 'real' one-stop shops
Next     : 5 held for holding foreigner hostage