Governor to convene meeting to address cable operators’ woes

KARACHI: Sindh Governor Imran Ismail has said he will soon convene a top-level meeting to consider the problems being faced by the city's Cable TV operators.

Sindh Governor stated this on Monday during a meeting with a seven-member delegation of Cable TV Operators’ Association led by its Chairman Khalid Arian. The Sindh Governor said the proposed top-level meeting on the issues of Cable TV operators would also have the representation of the Sindh Chief Minister, K-Electric, and other relevant authorities. Ismail said the meeting would help identify the exact causes behind several electrocutions. He said cutting wires of the cable TV service in the city would not solve any problem as they were inter-connected with other utility lines serving the bank ATMs and other means of communication.

The delegation of the Cable TV Operators’ Association assured the governor that the wires of cable TV service would be put in an orderly fashion and the wire clumps hanging around the poles would be removed. They assured the governor of help identifying illegal TV cable operators to the authorities. The cable operators demanded establishing a common corridor for provision of their services. The delegation also demanded that NOCs required by the cable TV operators for provision of their services should be readily issued. They also asked for exemption from road cutting charges being levied on the cable TV operators.

Later speaking to the media, Sindh Governor said the management of K-Electric has failed to fulfill its obligation for development and improvement of the electricity infrastructure. The Sindh governor dispelled the notion of any relationship between Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf leadership and the Abraaj Capital which is the owner of the K-Electric. Ismail pledged help in getting the K Electric pay compensation to the victims of electrocution. He said he would take up the issue of allowing more power distribution companies to provide services in Karachi in addition to the K-Electric for the benefit of the power consumers.