Uniform guidelines being issued to State Governments
In a move to address growing concerns over radiation emanating from cellular towers, the Department of Telecom will make it mandatory for telecom companies to get technical clearance from the Telecom Enforcement, Resource and Monitoring (TERM) Cell.
Tower firms will also have to get a structural stability certificate from neutral entities such as the Indian Institute of Technology and the Central Building Research Institute (CBRI).
Certification
The TERM Cell, the monitoring wing of the DoT, will have to certify that tower locations are not facing school, hospital and a distance of at least 50 metres is maintained. It will also make sure that there are no nearby buildings with highest comparable to that of the antenna and within a distance of 80 metres. The DoT is also formulating uniform guidelines for State Government agencies for granting permission to mobile companies to erect towers.
“Due to non-availability of uniform guidelines on installation of tower, State Government/local bodies are facing many issues, including health-related issues from mobile towers. In order to streamline the procedure for clearance for locating of mobile tower across the country, the DoT has devised certain uniform procedures that are proposed to be adopted by all Stat Governments for grant of permission for installation of mobile towers by the telecom service providers,” said a top DoT official.
This is in addition to the new radiation norms that kick in on September 1. The new norms require operators to reduce the electromagnetic radiation emanating from every tower by one-tenth of existing permissible limits.
Random test
But mobile companies have told the Government that they would have to reduce tower density in thickly populated urban areas if they have to meet the new norms. They claim that this will result in blank patches in networks which would result in poor coverage.
But the Department is unlikely to buy the operators’ claims. An internal document on random tests done by the Telecom Engineering Centres, the technical wing of the DoT, shows that no more than 5 per cent of the existing towers could get impacted. According to experts in the DoT, the operators can easily plug the gaps in these limited locations through new technologies.
Keywords: cellular towers, radiation norms, Department of Telecom, Telecom Enforcement, Resource and Monitoring, Tower firms, mobile towers
Comments:
Sir, it is observed that only Govt. owned BSNL follows this radiation norms but private operators want only business and hence not withstanding with Public health, they often increases signal power so much just to make customers happy , it really has a very bad health hazards to millions of customers. BSNL on the other hand, their employees are always worried that if they increase this signal strength, and if they are caught red handed, then they may loose their jobs. Hence they strictly maintain the norms and does not bother whether their customers are happy or not.
Sir, this is a correct observation. BSNL alawys adheres to the telecom regulations and technical standards, eventhough they are, at times, losing the customer base because of coverage issue by sticking to the standards. BSNL has that social & environmental obligations
It is the high time that the general public, particularly the mobile users, understand the electro magnetic radiation's ill effects of the mobile towers and mobile phones on our health and environments and shall change their attitude of always sticking to their mobiles unto their ears. It is better, more wise and healthier to use the land line phones in their home and offices and use mobiles only when they are on the move outside these permises, that also if it is essentially required. Don't budge to the Private Telecom Companies eye catching advertisments and loose your money and health.
It is observed that only Govt. owned BSNL follows this radiation norms 100% and private operators want only business and hence not withstanding with Public health, increaseing signal power just for the subr to happy .On the other hand if BSNL increase the signal power more penalty/ fine adopted may have to pay by the concerned staff and not by BSNL authorities and there by no employee IMPCS should go for this work . ( Penalty to staff only and increse signal strength to BNSl all ), this is not the case in private operators like Idea vodafone , full responsibility and fine to Vodafone . Idea management
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