The Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) will replace bare overhead power lines with the safer aerial bunched cables (ABC) in thickly populated areas and other locations identified as having ‘specific safety risks.’

The decision has been taken against the backdrop of recent electrical accidents, notably the electrocution at the Boys’ High School, Thevalakkara, which claimed the life of a 13-year-old boy.

Unlike conventional uninsulated cables used for overhead power lines, ABCs have several insulated conductors bundled together, usually with a bare or insulated neutral conductor.

The KSEB management has directed Electrical Circles to procure low-tension ABCs for use in regions identified has having “specific safety risks.” These regions include waterlogged localities, premises and associated areas of schools, anganwadis, religious institutions and thickly-populated areas identified as accident prone locations, according to the KSEB.

The decision to use ABCs was taken at a meeting convened by KSEB chairman and managing director Mir Mohammed Ali on July 20, three days after the electrocution at Thevalakkara.