Some digital services in India were impacted around the Christmas period after a telephone exchange in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, suffered a fire.

The Indian Press Information Bureau noted that a fire broke out on the second floor of the seven-story BSNL Anna Road telephone exchange building at 9:30 am on 20 December 2025.

No injuries were reported, and the blaze was reportedly brought under control by 12:30 pm local time.

The press bureau said the incident impacted mobile voice and data services in Chennai, the rest of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana, and affected calls to other operators and emergency services.

Emergency services and calls to other operators have reportedly been restored, while voice and data services in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and the rest of Tamil Nadu were also quickly restored.

Tangedco payment services were impacted.

The cause of the fire is under investigation, though local press reported an electrical short circuit or battery explosion may have been the source.

A representative of a BSNL employees’ union told The Hindu that the maintenance of facilities, including telephone exchanges and housing quarters, had suffered badly in recent years.

“Most exchange buildings look like bhoot (ghost) bungalows. The buildings in Perungudi are overrun with weeds,” they said. “This is the second time in recent times that the Anna Salai exchange has had a fire accident. The facilities are understaffed, and if maintenance is not taken up, BSNL will only stand to lose more customers.”

Founded in 2000, BSNL is the fourth-largest mobile operator in India. The company currently has nine core data centers across India in New Delhi, Ahmedabad, Faridabad, Alappuzha, Bangalore, Jaipur, Mumbai, Hyderabad, and Ludhiana.

Ramping up its 4G network, the company has deployed 25,000 4G towers across India, in regions including Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Western Uttar Pradesh, and Haryana.