MC impounds 3 gensets of Reliance Jio mobile towers

Rajinder Nagarkoti

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, August 18

Continuing with its drive against illegal mobile towers installed by Reliance Jio on government land, including various green belts in the city, the local Municipal Corporation (MC) today impounded three gensets of these towers.

The engineering wing of the MC carried out the drive in Sectors 19, 20 and 23, and impounded the gensets.

A senior MC official said they would now put up the case file before MC Commissioner B Purushartha for strict action against Reliance.

The MC had issued two notices to the company to remove these illegal towers, but to no avail. Yesterday, the MC initiated action against the company and disconnected power supply to 15 towers.

After receiving directions from the UT Estate Office and complaints from different quarters, the MC staff had detected 15 illegal towers in different parts of the city. Besides, a report was submitted to senior officials of the MC that 12 illegal towers had been installed in the area of other departments, which would be dealt by the respective departments.

UT Deputy Commissioner Ajit Balaji Joshi had sought a report from the company by Friday on whether or not it had taken permission.

The mobile tower policy of the Chandigarh Administration has been challenged by cellular operators in the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

The cellular operators claim that as per the Central Government policy, none of their mobile towers is illegal and the UT policy has a number of flaws.

According to the new tower policy released by UT Administrator Kaptan Singh Solanki in March 2015, the towers should be located only in open areas, like unused spots in parking spaces and open areas of institutions in such a manner that the functionality of the place does not get affected in any way. Towers can be installed on top of commercial or institutional buildings not less than three-storeys high.