The Karnataka High Court on Thursday directed the managing director of Bescom to personally appear and explain the reasons for not shifting the transformers from the footpaths in the city.
A division bench headed by Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi expressed dissatisfaction with the work related to the shifting of the transformers from the footpaths.
The counsel for the Bangalore Electricity Supply Company (Bescom) informed the court that the process to shift the transformers has commenced. He said that 5,245 transformers have been identified and a tender has been floated.
The counsel also submitted that it would take 18 months to shift all the identified transformers.
Meanwhile, the counsel for the petitioner informed the court about a transformer blast that killed a father-daughter duo in the city last week.
The bench said the process undertaken so far is not satisfactory. “In spite of sufficient time granted by this court, the shifting of transformers has not yet started. The delay in shifting of transformers affects the public at large as all these transformers are installed on the footpaths and put the public at risk and also causes inconvenience,” the bench said.
The bench posted the matter to April 7 and directed the managing director of Bescom to be present.
The court is hearing a PIL filed by Retd Wing Commander G B Atri. The petition contended that the installation of transformers on roads/footpaths poses grave danger to the public and motorists.
A high-level committee was constituted comprising officials from both Bescom and Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) on the directions of the high court. The committee had identified 5,245 transformers to be shifted. The committee also identified 2,641 transformers that cannot be shifted.
In the previous hearing, the bench had directed Bescom to submit an action plan to shift the identified transformers in a time-bound manner.