Mobile tower radiation may increase 10 times! What will be the effect if the government accepts the recommendation?

New Delhi. A government committee comprising representatives from the Department of Telecommunications and the Ministry of Health has recommended that electromagnetic field (EMF) emissions from mobile towers should be increased more than ten times from the current levels to bring it in line with the International Commission on Non-Ionising Protection (ICNIRP) norms 2020.

According to a report in the Times of India, these recommendations have been made in an effort to improve network coverage and reduce the need to install more towers in the country. Telecom industry lobby group COAI had also made a similar demand, arguing that the ‘ICNIRP norms are safe’ considering any potential adverse effects on the health of humans, children, pregnant women or other species due to increased levels of radiation.

While recommending a 10-fold increase in electromagnetic field (EMF) emissions from mobile towers, a government committee in its report also said that the measure could adversely affect public opinion and lead to ‘increased mistrust’. ‘Revision in EMF norms may increase public mistrust due to the negative health effects of EMF radiation,’ the committee recommended several advocacy efforts and testing of towers at affordable cost to allay people’s fears.

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Let us tell you that keeping in mind the public concerns and a series of court petitions about radiation from telecom towers, India had earlier limited it to one-tenth of ICNIRP levels, against which the companies had protested. They argued that reduction in EMF level emission means poor coverage and more towers.

A source told the publication that the matter had reached the level of new Communications Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, who was keen to understand the recommendations and its implications. “The minister understands the sensitivity of the matter and has expressed concern over any potential adverse effect such a measure may have on public perception on the health or safety of individuals,” the source said.

The issue of radiation from telecom towers, even at current levels, has always been a very sensitive one, with many cases filed in courts by RWAs, environmentalists and pressure groups against the installation of towers in their neighbourhoods. There are many examples across the country where such petitions—or protests by residents—have led to companies removing towers from key locations, often leading to poor services.

Industry body COAI claims that the ICNIRP radiation levels have been approved by the WHO and the International Telecommunication Union. “Both these organisations recommend the human exposure guidelines developed by the ICNIRP. The ICNIRP guidelines are designed to provide protection to all people, including children, from all established health hazards. There is a need to align our norms with the internationally accepted three standard levels suggested by the latest ICNIRP 2020 guidelines recommended by the WHO,” COAI director general Lt Gen (retd) SP Kochar told TOI.

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