Mayor Gautam Deb has asked state-run and private Internet service providers to take the initiative to lay their distribution cables underground.

This, Deb said, was a part of the plan to lay all cables underground across Siliguri to decongest roads.

In Siliguri, a major project has been taken up by the Bengal State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (WBSEDCL) with the World Bank's financial assistance to replace overhead power distribution cables with underground cables.

Once the overhead power cables are removed, these Internet service providers will have to similarly adopt underground cables, said the mayor after attending a meeting with them on Wednesday.

According to Deb, there are 35 Internet service providers in Siliguri.

Sources in the SMC said that on Wednesday, it was decided that from January 2, representatives of these Internet service operators would visit different locations with officials of the power department to inspect the work of laying underground power cables.

“Later, Internet service providers will be given a PowerPoint presentation so that they can understand the work better,” the source added.

Work on laying underground power cables in Siliguri started on December 11.