BSNL cuts FDA's Moshi office lines over unpaid bills; internet, phones down for eight days

Pimpri Chinchwad: Internet and telephone services have been down for the past eight days at the Pune divisional office of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in Moshi. The bills were not paid, and Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) cut the connections.

With the office lines shut, officers and staff are managing their daily work on the mobile data of their own phones.

This is not the first time. Connections at the office have been cut in the same way several times over the past few months. Bills are generally paid only when the senior office releases money for administrative expenses, and services are restored only after that. Because the money arrives late, the lines keep getting cut, causing trouble for officers and staff.

Internet and telephones are basic necessities for the FDA's daily work. Official correspondence, sharing of information and other administrative work all depend on them. The Pune division handles FDA work in five districts: Pune, Satara, Sangli, Kolhapur and Solapur. Repeated disconnections could therefore affect coordination across the whole division.

Girish Hukare, Joint Commissioner (Drugs) of the FDA's Pune division, said the senior office has been informed that funds are needed for the office's expenses. He said, "Internet and telephone services will be restored soon. For now these services are down, but the rest of the office's work is going on."

People who visit the office on work say the money should be released on time so that services are not interrupted repeatedly. Local residents have also expressed concern about how to reach the Moshi office in an urgent situation when the phones are down. They say an office that serves the public should have its telephone and internet working at all times.