The Margao Municipal Council resumed its drive against overhead cables with civic workers bringing down cables around the Old Market area of the city on Monday.
Chief Officer Sidhivinayak Naik told the media that the drive will continue in the next few days, saying the operation has been resumed after giving due notice to the cable operators.
The action comes ahead of the four-day Goa Heritage Festival which will be held in and around the Old Market area of the city from May 2 to 5. The CO did not deny the fact that the action against overhead cables saying that it is not only because of the forthcoming heritage festival, but also due to the fact that cables, which were removed in August last has resurfaced again.
He said the ongoing operation will continue till the area around the Holy Spirit Church square as the overhead cables have turned out to be an eyesore. When the media sought to know why the civic body had removed the overhead cables belonging to Goan operators while leaving those owned by three outside operators untouched, the Chief Officer said the three operators have the necessary permission to put up the cables.
Households in the area miss regular TV programmes
MARGAO: Margao Municipal Chief Officer Sidhivinayak Naik’s action of cutting overhead TV cables in and around the old market ahead of the four-day Goa Heritage Festival has left hundreds of city households, both in Fatorda and Margao, without entertainment, news and sports in their homes on Monday evening for no fault of theirs. In fact, while the action of removing the overhead TV cables was aimed at clearing the city of the eyesore, it triggered outrage from households as they had to go without their normal TV programmes, including the entertaining mega serials, sports and news.
Households, which were relying on the cable TV for their news, sports and entertainment, could not get the latest on the polling, besides news on the sports front. When agitated customers were told by the cable operators that the MMC’s decision has resulted in the peculiar situation many a customer demanded to know why they have been punished for no fault of theirs by the civic body and the powers that be. When The Goan contacted the cable operators, they attributed the situation to the removal of the overhead cables by the Chief Officer Sidhivinayak Naik. Till late in the night, the cable operators were on the job of pulling a cable behind the old court in order to provide the customers with the normal entertainment at least on Tuesday.
A cable operator pointed out that the CO straight away went about removing the overhead cables, without realizing the loss it would cause to the operators and inconvenience to the hundreds, if not thousands, of customers.
