Team Herald
PANJIM: Internet services in Panjim have started to return to normal after urgent changes were made to the Nodal officers on Tuesday. Service providers have assured that 95 percent of services will be restored by Thursday evening.
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The Chief Minister has also promised that an underground system for laying cables will be implemented as a permanent solution in the near future. However, questions are being raised as to why government agencies did not make use of the utility ducts already laid on the Smart City roads.
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and cable operators began restoring connections to subscribers late on Tuesday night and continued throughout Wednesday. They were temporarily authorised to do so following a strong backlash from subscribers and industry professionals who were affected by the disconnections.
Speaking to the press, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant stated that the government had instructed the ISPs to restore connections, and they would be granted the necessary permissions once they formally applied.
“Temporary arrangements have been made, but in the long term, we are moving towards underground cabling, where private operators can participate. The Chief Secretary held a high-level inter-departmental meeting, and we will come up with a final solution,” said the Chief Minister.
Meanwhile, the recently replaced Executive Engineer, Kashinath Shetye, said he had been superseded by new appointees, and it remains to be seen how revenues will be managed and how internet services will be provided. “I am satisfied with the work I have done,” he remarked.
“I would have followed all the procedures to recover the money owed to the Electricity Department (ED). I issued over 200 notices to ISPs who had illegally strung wires on electricity poles,” he added.
Activists and concerned citizens in Goa have questioned the removal of
the Executive Engineer, who had been adhering to the rules and working to recover previously uncollected revenue. Activist Mariano Ferrao commented, “Simple street lighting fees and FPPCA charges are being levied on ordinary citizens, yet the
person who was attempting to recover money
from corporations has been removed.”
