Kathmandu. KATHMANDU: The government has become active with the aim of concluding the management of wires including electricity, telecommunication and internet in the Kathmandu Valley within the timeframe.

Minister for Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation Biraj Bhakta Shrestha and Minister for Communications and Information Technology Dr. A high-level meeting held at the Energy Ministry on Wednesday in the presence of Bikram Timilsina directed the subordinate bodies to complete the task of removing the unsystematic wires within the stipulated timeframe.

The meeting was attended by representatives of Nepal Telecommunication Authority, Nepal Electricity Authority, Nepal Telecom, Ncell and ISPAN. The meeting also decided to intensify the unsystematic wire management campaign with work area division, deadline and joint action plan.

In the meeting, Energy Minister Biraj Bhakta Shrestha stressed the need of effective coordination among all bodies as no single organization could solve the unsystematic wire management. Stating that the agreements signed with the service providers should also be reviewed if necessary, he clarified that the government’s objective was not to cause any difficulty but to seek a long-term solution. “We are all facing the same problem and challenge. So, instead of blaming each other, we should focus on solutions,” he said.

According to him, the Ministry has been forwarding legal reforms to start work from certain areas as a pilot project, to deliver results within the deadline and to bring legal reforms that fall under the jurisdiction of the Ministry.

Minister Shrestha also said that the issue of the payment of dues by the internet service providers would be resolved in a legal and practical way. He also said that the government was positive regarding establishing a telecommunications infrastructure company for long-term solution.

Similarly, Minister for Communications and Information Technology, Dr. Bikram Timilsina said that the directives issued earlier have not been implemented as expected and now work should be done not only to review but also to show direct results. He directed them to remove the cable cables that are not in use, to inform the concerned ministries and bodies about the obstructions seen in the work and to complete the wire management as per the commitment.

He stressed that the Telecommunication Authority should play a leading role as a regulatory body and prepare an integrated action plan to work in which sector and when to implement it with a deadline. Stating that the people are expecting immediate results, he made it clear that dilly-dallying would not be acceptable now.

In the meeting, the sub-committee formed for the management of unsystematic wires said that works have been forwarded in six primary routes where the electricity infrastructure is used. A public notice was issued on June 12 directing the service providers to remove the disused wires.

He informed that the wires are being managed in the old Baneshwor-Gaushala-Chabahil area at present while works have been forwarded in other places in priority given by the Kathmandu Metropolitan City. Stating that it was difficult to work with the electricity infrastructure due to the rainy season, the discussion was also stressed on ensuring the mandatory participation of service providers.

Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) has said that it has removed unnecessary wires from many places but it is difficult to identify the ownership of the cables installed by various service providers on the poles. According to NEA, the management has become complicated due to the tendency of not removing the old cables after installing new cables. Similarly, the issue of non-payment of pole fare by some service providers was also raised.

Sudhir Parajuli, president of ISPAN, said that solution oriented cooperation is more important than blame, and in many places, it is not clear which cable belongs to which service provider.

According to Nepal Telecom, the tagging and management works are going on in two routes and the speed of the work will be doubled within a month by mobilizing additional human resources.  The meeting has also decided to take forward the management of unmanaged wires not only as a sanitation campaign but also as a national campaign linked to urban beauty, citizen safety, long-term management of telecommunication infrastructure and improvement in inter-agency coordination.