In a most unfortunate incident a man and his niece, who was riding pillion, were injured after an electricity pole fell on their two-wheeler along the road at Altinho-Panaji.
The police said that the pole, reportedly due to corrosion, broke apart and fell landing on the two-wheeler that was passing by at that time. Both the rider and the pillion suffered head injuries.
It is pertinent to note that there are several electricity poles which are in a corroded condition and need to be replaced. It is observed that at several places the electricity pole is planted directly into the soil.
There is every possibility of the pole getting corroded at the base due to accumulation of water during the rainy season. This can lead to breaking of the pole into two thereby putting the life of the citizens to the risk.
The situation could be still worse if the broken electricity pole also brings down live wires. This can even lead to fatality. Ideally the bottom end of the electricity needs to be fortified by a concrete base which is higher than the ground level. At several places concrete electric poles are also used besides the metal ones.
These concrete poles can also become weak due to seepage of rain-water. The officials of the electricity department need to carry out a survey of the electricity poles in their jurisdiction.
Those electricity poles, which are corroded and are liable to break and fall down, need to be replaced on a war-footing.
