86% of HT and 75% of LT cables aerially bunched or made underground in Bengaluru
While conversion of cables that were taken up in 2019 as per State government is complete, it is going on in areas which were newly added to BMAZ
Bescom took up the conversion projects mainly with safety in focus.
| Photo Credit: file photo
It has been over 15 years since the Bangalore Electricity Supply Company began aerial bunching (AB) and underground (UG) conversion of the existing overhead cable network in the Bengaluru Metropolitan Area Zone (BMAZ). The projects are slowly heading towards completion as 86% of high tension (HT) cables and 75% of low tension (LT) cables have now been converted.
As of now, Bescom has taken 9,465 km of HT cables underground, while 412 km of cables have been aerially bunched. When it comes to LT cables, 1,764 km of overhead cables have been changed to underground cables, while 7,870 km of cables have been aerially bunched. Around 1,600 km of HT cables and around 3,200 km of LT cables are yet to be covered under the projects.
These projects were mainly taken up with electric safety in focus. “The work is progressing quickly. In 2022-23, we converted 3,301 km of HT lines and 5,332 km of LT lines into AB and UG cables,” said a senior official from Bescom. In 2023-24, 683.67 km of HT lines and 1,739.37 km of LT lines were converted. In the ongoing year (2024-25), 0.74 km of HT lines have been aerially bunched, while 134.9 km were taken underground. Similarly, 22.55 km of LT lines have been aerially bunched, and 83.42 km have gone underground,” said a Bescom official.
Dangling cables
However, citizens continue to complain that dangling cables are a common sight in the city. “Our area has got increasingly densely populated with schools and what not coming up in every nook and corner. Yet, even in the residential areas where there are a lot of roadside trees, and the buildings are close to each other, nothing has been done about the power lines. They dangle close to homes and tree branches, and I don’t think the routine pruning of trees Bescom does is the solution. We need a more permanent solution like aerial bunching,” said Athira D., a resident of Maruthinagar near Malleshpalya.
Kanchana M., another resident of Yelahanka, said, “Especially in residential areas, we see many wires, and the project needs to pick up pace and cover these.”
In 2019, as per State government instructions, Bescom took up the project of converting 6,900 km of overhead cables into UG cables. Bescom officials said while 97% of LT lines and 98.56% of HT lines have been converted under that project till now, the process of converting the lines in areas that were newly added to BMAZ after they came under Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) limits is ongoing.
Electric cables in areas like Kasavanahalli, Jalahalli, Rajanukunte, S.G. Palya, Marathahalli, Manyata Tech Park and Kumbalgodu are yet to be converted into AB and UG cables. Within the next two years, all the areas in BMAZ are expected to have AB and UG cables.
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