No health hazard from telecom towers: Govt quotes WHO

The Government on Friday quoted the World Health Organisation (WHO) in the Rajya Sabha to allay fears of radiation from the telecom towers and handsets. The WHO has said: "The current evidence does not confirm the existence of any health consequences from exposure to low level electromagnetic fields."

The clarification came from Minister of State for Communication Manoj Sinha in a written reply to Goa's Congress MP Shantaram Naik on the mobile connectivity problem in parts of Goa for want of enough telecom towers due to protests on the pretext of radiation hazards.

He admitted that the telecom operators face resistance or delay in some cases in issue of the no-objection certificate (NOC) from the Gram Panchayat and protests by the local residents. As on 30.04.2017, 1233 towers are functional in Goa supporting 5403 base transceiver stations (BTS) while 259 proposals are pending for erection of the new towers. Asked about any new technology developed to replace the towers, the minister said as an alterantive 38 Cells on Wheels (COW) shared by multiple operators were allowed to enhance connectivity during BRICs event in Goa last October, only eight of which were dismantled after the summit.

The minister said the Goa government has already issued instructions to the village panchayats and administrative bodies to support the erection of these towers. He said 15 teams of senior doctors and officials were mobilised in September last year to address the concerns across 18 Gram Sabhas in South Goa.