Cyclone Amphan: Telcos, infrastructure providers rush to restore telecom network

NEW DELHI: Supercyclone Amphan has caused widespread damage to telecom networks in West Bengal, and in Odisha to a lesser extent, leaving telcos and infrastructure providers working on a war-footing in close coordination with local authorities to restore services.

Mobile phone companies on Thursday were still assessing the extent of the damage but according to industry estimates, more than 50% of the tower sites were either damaged or impacted due to interrupted power supply in West Bengal alone.

Meanwhile, in a late evening meeting with service providers, telecom secretary Anshu Prakash reviewed the connectivity status in twin states and asked Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea to enable at least 1,000 telecom sites up within a day’s time.