Report filed by the DPCC regardings mobile towers in parks of Delhi, 19/12/2022
Response filed by the Delhi Pollution Control Committee in the matter of Jan Seva Welfare Society Vs Govt of NCT of Delhi & Others dated 19/12/2022. The matter related to telecom towers in DDA parks at 9 locations of Pitampura, Delhi.
The Ministry of Communication, Department of Telecommunications vide letter dated March 10, 2021 has said that electromagnetic radiations "from a mobile tower which are below the safe limit prescribed by ICNIRP and recommended by World Health Organization have no convincing scientific evidence of causing adverse health effects".
Further it said that "keeping the precautionary EMF safe exposure limits for the radio frequency field as 1/10th of the safe limits prescribed by ICNIRP for all area in India, eliminates the need for fixing lower for specific area like school, hospitals, residential premises, children playgrounds; a segregation of which is impractical in densely populated localities". The DPCC said that as per the awareness note on mobile tower radiation and its impacts on environment as published by the Central Pollution Control Board, the Air Act, 1981 and the Environment Act, 1986 shows that radiation is not covered under the provisions of the Act and thus not a pollutant.
Thus, the only issue of direct concern is the noise and air emission control from the DG sets attached to the mobile tower if any. As of now, in Delhi mobile tower companies are not installing DG sets in the mobile tower.
"There is no clarity yet as to whether mobile towers actually cause harm to human health and environment". Be it the guidelines issued by the CPCB or the various orders passed by the Supreme Court, National Green Tribunal and High Courts, it is yet to be decided as to whether there is any impact of mobile radiations on human health and environment.
The awareness note published by the Central Pollution Control Board does not mention that mobile tower radiations in India cause any harm to human health. There were no environmental standards and norms prescribed for radiation from mobile towers under environmental laws and the matter of radiation from mobile towers does not fall in the ambit of Environment Act, 1986, stated the DPCC in its report to the NGT, December 19, 2022.