Telecom operators who are yet to get instructions from the Chennai Corporation are planning to meet with civic body officials to facilitate right of way for cables.
A private telecom operator said a response can be framed only after the Corporation formally conveys its intentions on this matter. According to a spokesperson, compliance with due processes is central to all its operations.
In matters such as obtaining right of way for laying cables, operators have to remit prescribed charges that can range from Rs. 5,500 for municipality jurisdictions, Rs. 6,300 per km for Corporation areas and Rs. 50,000 per km for the Railways, depending on the location. Apart from this, restoration charges are also levied, operators said.
The timelines for securing permission are the lowest (30 days) for municipality areas and highest for Railways (180 days) while it is about 120 days in Corporation precincts.
Meanwhile, work on removal of illegal cables has already begun in areas such as Anna Nagar, T. Nagar, Teynampet, Kodambakkam, Alandur and Adyar. Civic body employees who repair non-functional streetlights have been instructed to disconnect all cables without tags. At a recent meeting, a few telecom service providers and cable TV operators had declared they would cooperate with the civic body in the removal of cables and ducting of underground cables for concrete topping work.
The civic body has also planned to collect a revised track rent from the companies after making changes to infrastructure on roads.
