DoT to launch ‘Sanchar Tarang’ in November

Vijay C Roy

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, October 21

Perturbed over increasing public outcry over tower installation, limiting telecom infrastructure, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) will launch “Sanchar Tarang,” a new portal next month to facilitate users to check radiation compliance status of towers across the country and also get a specific one tested on request by making payment.

Currently, there are around 4.75 lakh telecom towers in the country deploying over 1.2 million Base Transceiver Stations (BTSes).

“Telecom towers are critical installations for wireless communication and there are unfounded apprehensions about electro-magnetic field (EMF) emissions. There is no scientific evidence backing the claim that EMF radiations from mobile towers can cause adverse health effects. So, to allay consumers concerns, we are planning to launch “Sanchar Tarang,” which will facilitate users to check radiation compliance status of towers. The user can get any particular tower tested by making a payment of Rs 5,000,” said JS Deepak, Secretary, DoT, Ministry of Communications, on the sidelines of a public outreach and awareness programme organised by the DoT.

Deepak said our EMF norms were much stricter than what was followed by many developed nations, including the US, the UK and most parts of the European Union. Further, the Government of India has taken adequate steps to ensure that telecom service providers adhere to these prescribed norms, he added.

He said the government had imposed a total penalty of Rs 2 crore on telecom companies for violating mobile towers radiation guidelines. He assured that the department would look into various safety concerns that had been raised. The DoT tested 3.15 lakh base stations and found that 210 of them were non-compliant to radiation rules.

Officials said the portal will be interactive for the users and it will also enable users to view tower-specific details such as the operator, the supporting technology and more importantly, if it meets EMF-compliance norms.