DoT to unveil portal on mobile radiation in a month

"Status of the towers will be available on the portal which will be launched in a month," Union Minister of State for Communications Manoj Sinha said

Jaipur, Dec 17: The Department of Telecom (DoT) is set to launch a portal - Tarang - with data on all mobile towers and transmitters across the country in a month that will allow a user to check the radiation compliance status.

"Status of the towers will be available on the portal which will be launched in a month. Those who...want to get the radiation level checked of towers will be done by the government and he will be informed," Union Minister of State for Communications Manoj Sinha told reporters here.

Telecom Secretary J S Deepak said, a fee of Rs 5,000 would be charged for the test to be conducted by the government. "We conduct test on random basis and through this portal and on payment, test of specific tower would be done," he added.

Addressing an awareness programme on EMF emissions and telecom towers, the minister said, there are myths about the radiation and its impact on health which need to be eliminated by creating awareness. "Mobile connectivity and broadband are a necessity today and without infrastructure for this, we can not make our society cashless.

There is a misconception...that electromagnetic emission from towers cause adverse impact on health. There are studies conducted by WHO and various countries but no study has so far established this fact," the minister claimed. Sinha further said that permissible limit for the radiation in India is ten times less than those in other countries.

"It is necessary to install more towers to meet today's demand but due to this myth, there are difficulties in installing new towers. We want to create awareness among the people. The government is responsible and concerned for public health but some misconceptions prevail and they need to be addressed by awareness," he said.

He also said that the government has allowed the telecom companies to install towers on the buildings of post offices and other government offices and asked the state governments to issue permission in their respective states too.

"Norms are tight in India and we take stern action on violation of norms," the minister said, while asking the telecom companies and the state government officials to run awareness campaigns. Rajasthan Industry Minister Rajpal Singh, Mayor of Jaipur Municipal Corporation Ashok Lahoti, government officials and telecom companies were also present at the event.

PTI