Can’t depute guards at all towers: Telcos To convey their reservations to UT Admn

Ramkrishan Upadhyay

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, November 25

Finding the Deputy Commissioner’s order asking them to depute security guards at mobile towers in the city within a week unviable, representatives of mobile companies have decided to convey their reservations to the UT Administration on Monday.

Sources said the decision was taken by the Cellular Operators Association of India in New Delhi.

One of the representatives said while they understood the concerns of the Administration regarding misuse of towers by some persons to press for their demands, the direction to depute a security guard at each tower was not viable.

Following incidents of employees climbing up towers to draw attention of the authorities regarding their demands, Deputy Commissioner Ajit Balaji Joshi had issued an order to the mobile companies on November 23 asking them to depute a security guard at each tower. The Deputy Commissioner issued the order under Section 133 of the CrPC as an emergency measure.

The Deputy Commissioner was of the opinion that such incidents caused disturbance to public peace/law and order and were a danger to human life.

The sources said the mobile companies would plead before the Administration that they would cooperate with it in checking incidents of people climbing up towers and if need be depute security guards for some time as an emergency measure, but not permanently.

Towering problem

One of the representatives said while they understood the concerns of the Administration regarding misuse of towers by some persons to press for their demands, the direction to depute a security guard at each tower was not viable.