PANAJI
The Goa Cable TV Networking and Service Providers Association has filed a petition before the High Court of Bombay at Goa, seeking relief against the Electricity Department's drive to disconnect cables hanging from electric poles.
In the writ petition filed by the Association and businessman Anand Talwalkar, they urged the court to issue an interim injunction restraining the Electricity Department and its Executive Engineer from cutting, snapping or disconnecting cables that provide connectivity to their subscribers until the final disposal of the case.
The High Court has scheduled the matter for hearing on January 22.
The petitioners stated that there exist around 240 cable television operators who earn their livelihood out of the income derived from providing digital cable, television viewing and broadband services.
There are about 1.5 lakh digital cable television users and around 50,000 broadband subscribers. These include both members and non-members who operate as cable service providers across the State.
According to the petitioners, some of their members had previously applied for licenses under the Goa Telecom Infrastructure Policy 2020 for using public infrastructure to lay cables. They claimed that despite their willingness to comply with the policy and pay the requisite fees, the Electricity Department (Respondent No. 2) failed to respond to their applications.
“Even after considering all the said factors, some of the petitioners have been ready and willing to take the course as per the policy and pay the requisite fees...but there was no reply filed by Respondent number 2...” it said.
The petitioners expressed "utter shock and dismay" over a letter dated January 9, 2025, in which the department's nodal officer directed the executive engineer to remove all cables on streetlight poles and other electricity poles, citing non-revenue generation and probable energy theft as reasons.
The petition reiterated that the delay in granting permissions despite their readiness to pay the fees, has left them in a precarious situation.
