KATHMANDU, July 31: The Internet Service Providers’ Association of Nepal (ISPAN) has been granted an additional 15 days to complete the management of tangled overhead utility wires and cables in the Kathmandu Valley, after failing to meet the earlier deadline.
For years, unused and tangled internet, telephone, and cable wires have hung from utility poles across the capital, creating a persistent eyesore. At a meeting convened at the Ministry of Information and Communications on Friday, ISPAN requested more time to finish the task.
The meeting was attended by representatives from the Ministry of Information and Communications, the Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation, Nepal Telecommunications Authority, Nepal Telecom, ISPAN, and other agencies.
Wire extension on Trishuli-Kathmandu 220 KV transmission line b...
Information and Communications Minister Dr. Bikram Timilsina reviewed progress on wire management and urged stakeholders to deliver results within the extended timeframe. “The government will bring wire management to a conclusion. It may take some time to get the work done, but we cannot extend the deadline furthermore,” he said, stressing that service providers bear the legal and professional responsibility for the task.
Timilsina also directed ISPAN to provide timely updates on challenges encountered and reiterated the government’s readiness to resolve genuine problems. For a long-term solution, he suggested studying the feasibility of a shared infrastructure among service providers. Expressing dissatisfaction with both ISPAN and the regulator, he noted that delays were the fault of both the association and the Nepal Telecommunications Authority.
ISPAN Chief Executive Officer Subas Khadka reported that around 58 percent of work has been completed in six designated areas of the Valley under the first phase. He added that wire management activities are underway in other locations as well, and emphasized the need to establish a separate infrastructure company for sustainable solutions.
ISPAN has also raised concerns that the Nepal Electricity Authority failed to construct adequate infrastructure for internet and cable services while laying underground electricity lines. The association said it is preparing to recruit additional manpower and has already initiated underground cabling projects in areas such as Kalanki–Thankot and Chabahil–Bouddha.
At a high-level inter-agency meeting on July 15, ISPAN had committed to complete wire management in six Valley areas by July 31. The target areas included Tripureshwor–Kalimati–Kalanki, Jadibuti–Pepsicola, Tripureshwor–Lazimpat, Samakhusi–Town Planning–Gonggabu, Kirtipur, and Old Baneshwor–Gaushala–Chabahil.
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