Telecom tower radiation ‘not hazardous to health’

JS Deepak, Union Secretary of the Department of Telecommunications and Information Technology, has dispelled fears that telecommunication towers are create health hazards for people.

Deepak addressed a public outreach and awareness programme organised under the aegis of the Department of Telecommunications on Electromagnetic Field (EMF) Emissions and Mobile Towers in Dehradun today. He said telecom towers were critical installations that were the backbone of wireless communication in the country. He admitted that unfounded apprehensions that telecom towers radiations were a health hazard could derail the country’s growth story.

“Electromagnetic emission from mobile towers are much below the safety limits prescribed by the International Commission on Non-ionizing Radiation Protection and recommended by the World Health Organization. There is no scientific evidence of telecom towers causing adverse health effects,” Deepak said.

Shivendra Bhatnagar, Senior Deputy Director General, Telecom Enforcement Resource and Monitoring (TERM) unit, explained the strict monitoring and enforcement mechanism put in place by the Department of Telecommunications for EMF related compliance. He said a committee formed at the behest of the Allahabad High Court comprising experts from IITs, AIIMS, Delhi, Indian Council of Medical Research and the Indian Institute of Toxicology Research, Lucknow, had also on the basis of scientific evidences, studies and reports available, found that there was no conclusive evidence about the stated dangers of EMF radiation from mobile towers.

Another speaker Dr TK Joshi from Maulana Azad Medical College, Delhi, said scientific studies had not been able to conclude that EMF emissions from mobile towers could cause health hazards. “Till date there is no evidence to conclude that exposure to low-level electromagnetic fields is harmful to human health,” he added.

Dr Suresh Attili from Grace Cancer Foundation said electromagnetic emission norms were much stricter in India than followed by many developed nations, including the USA, the UK and most parts of the European Union.

Several senior officers from the Central Government, Uttarakhand government, eminent persons and public representatives attended the programme.

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Department of Telecommunications’ help sought in Naxal areas

Radiation from cellphone towers harmless

Hyderabad: Chief Secretary Rajiv Sharma said the government was approaching the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) for improving cell phone services in remote areas of the state, especially extremists’ affected areas. Delivering the inaugural address at an awareness programme on emission of Electromagnetic Field (EMF) from cell towers organised by DoT, the CS said that cell towers were absolutely safe.

DoT deputy director general (CS) Dr. R.M. Chaturvedi said that after holding about 25,000 studies in 30 years, the WHO had arrived at the conclusion that scientific knowledge in this area was now more extensive than for most chemicals. “The WHO involved more than 50 national authorities and eight international organisations in the EMF project since 1996. They have been reviewing scientific information to provide scientifically sound answers to public concerns about the hazards of low-level EMF,” he said.

Mr Chaturvedi said that as per international norms an EMF of 10 watts per square meter was allowed from cell towers. “But, in India, we are using only 1 watt per square meter. We shall hold the testing at cell towers from Thursday to create awareness among the public,” he said. Explaining about the hazards of EMF, he said, “There is no harm from the frequencies released by cell towers. If the atmosphere temperature exceeds 40 degrees Celsius, it will have a little impact and if it increases to 50 degrees Celsius, public feel uncomfortable,” he said.

DoT DDG-TERM Shivendra Bhatnagar said a penalty of Rs 10 lakh per incidence was imposed in case of any cell tower violating EMF norms. “If violation persists, sites and towers can also be closed down,” he said. DoT DDG-TERM G. Gowri Shankar, DoT director M. Chandramoli, KREST foundation chairman Dr. Kakarla Subba Rao, IT expert Dr. T. Hanuman Chowdary, doctors and experts also took part in the programme.

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