Khonsa, Apr 27: An awareness meeting on the ‘Call Before You Dig’ (CBuD) app was held at the DC’s conference hall here on Monday to enhance inter-departmental coordination and prevent damage to underground infrastructure.
The meeting was chaired by Assistant Commissioner NL Naam and attended by administrative officers and officials from various line departments. A detailed presentation on the CBuD platform was delivered by the National Informatics Centre (NIC) Tirap team.
The session focused on the importance of prior information-sharing before undertaking excavation works, aiming to improve coordination between digging agencies and infrastructure owners.
Officials highlighted that such coordination is crucial to avoid accidental damage to essential underground utilities, including telecom cables, optical fibre networks, water pipelines, and power lines.
It was informed that effective implementation of the CBuD system could result in significant financial savings, estimated at around Rs 3,000 crore annually at the national level.
Participants were also briefed on provisions of the Telecommunications Act, 2023, which mandate the use of the CBuD platform for excavation activities. Non-compliance leading to damage of underground infrastructure may attract penalties of up to Rs 2 crore, along with possible imprisonment.
All departments were urged to actively adopt the platform and share relevant data to ensure its effective implementation in the district. (DIPRO)