The Times of India                26.09.2013

Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation to upload list of legal cell towers

NAVI MUMBAI: The Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) is planning to put up a list of legal mobile towers within its jurisdiction on its website for citizens' reference.

"Cell phone companies have followed administrative procedures and taken necessary permission for installing more than 425 mobile towers on top of the buildings. The civic body will list the data on its website," said Prakash Thakur, assistant director, town planning.

Recently, during a Janata Darbar held by Thane guardian minister Ganesh Naik, citizens complained about increasing health hazards caused due to high radiations emitted by mobile towers. Naik has asked the local body to take cognizance of this issue and accordingly take action, sources said.

According to the NMMC officials, there is no data on illegal cell towers in the corporation limit. "Long back we had asked all ward officers to collate the number of legal and illegal mobile towers in their jurisdiction. But the instruction seems to have been overlooked by civic officials," said a law department official.

According to the policy, no cell tower can come up without permission under various sections of the Maharashtra Regional Town Planning Act or from planning or municipal bodies.

But despite rules, over 800 cell towers have been installed in the NNMC limits and nearly half of them are believed to be illegal as they have failed to follow the necessary administrative procedure and secure approvals according to the norms, said NMMC officials.