AP power dept bans mobile phones, exempts top brass

AMARAVATI: To create a "distraction-free" environment in offices, the Andhra Pradesh Central Power Distribution Corporation Limited (CPDCL) will now prohibit all employees from using mobile phones.

According to reports, beginning October 1, computer operators, record assistants, typists, junior and senior assistants, and outsourced employees working in all CPDCL offices will be required to leave their cell phones at the door. No employee will be permitted to answer phones or take messages while at work.

The electricity department, according to reports, believes that mobile phones have turned into a real nuisance since workers are wasting their working hours on their mobile phones, consequently hindering the day-to-day office job.

A directive prohibiting the use of mobile phones by workers while at work was issued by CPDCL Chairman and Managing Director J Padma Reddy. However, the ban does not apply to the organization's senior officers. According to official sources, this is most likely the first order of its kind ever placed by a government agency.