Kasaragod: The tragic death of an eighth-grade student in Kollam due to the negligence of authorities has sparked widespread concern across Kerala about the safety of overhead electric lines. In Kasaragod too, poorly maintained and dangerously placed electric lines, described by locals as `vines of indifference, hang over roads and buildings.

Right next to the entrance of BMHS School in Kasaragod town, the Electricity Department has installed a transformer. While an iron fence was put up for protection, its gate remains wide open and the boundary wall along the roadside is in a precarious condition.

At Rajapuram, a low-hanging single-phase electric line dangerously close to the ground poses a serious risk. This line, running from the Rajapuram Ayyankavu Onnam Mile transformer to the Vattiyar region under the KSEB Rajapuram Section, is used daily by large numbers of pedestrians, including schoolchildren. Despite repeated complaints, residents say the KSEB authorities have refused to act.

Residents are demanding that the line, which runs dangerously close to the road, be relocated before a tragedy occurs.

Along the national highway near Uppala, several transformers have been set up along service roads without any protective fencing. In many locations, cables hang so low they brush against the ground, posing a grave danger to motorists and pedestrians alike. At Nayabazar, fuses and cables from one such transformer lie in direct contact with the ground. Locals fear that during the rains, a damaged cable coming into contact with water could lead to a fatal accident.