2 days Ago
A retired police officer sustained injuries after one of the wheels of his bike got entangled with a dangling overhead cable fibre near Hirabaug Chowk on Tilak Road on April 14. Former assistant commissioner of police (ACP) Arvind Patil, 68, of Bibvewadi, was riding the Bullet with his friend as pillion when a cable tied to a roadside tree got entangled to the vehicle’s wheel causing Patil and his friend to fall from the vehicle. Patil suffered arm, leg injuries and finger nerve damage.
Patil filed a complaint at Swargate Police Station against the unidentified person responsible for installing the cable and officials for negligence. The incident took place around 11.15am when the duo was returning home from an eatery near Sarasbaug.
According to authorities, the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) had carried out a special drive against unauthorised overhead cables ahead of prime minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Sir Parashuram Bhau College (SP College) in 2023. Manisha Shekatkar, chief superintendent engineer, electrical department, PMC, said, “There is no permission to place overhead cables in the city. Ward offices carry out weekly drives.
” Sahebrao Dandge, superintendent engineer, PMC road department, said, “Around three years ago, PMC General Body had approved a proposal to fine companies for installing overhead cables and directed them to shift to underground networks. PMC also conducted a survey and identified the companies responsible, but the matter hasn’t progressed since.” While PMC has formulated a policy for underground cables, with a fixed rate of ₹ 2,600 per running metre for laying such lines, there is no parallel regulation for overhead cables.
“Only MSEDCL has official permission for overhead wires, and even they have started shifting to underground networks under infrastructure upgrade projects in the last decade,” a civic official said..
