This isn’t a dialogue from a written script. And she doesn’t like to be called a celebrity campaigner. But this is how actor Juhi Chawla woke up to real life story. And since then her world changed. 

“It all began when we saw 14 mobile towers erected, many of them illegally, right in front of our apartment in Mumbai and the residents started reporting sickness in 2010. The emission norms were in all probability not monitored and finally 13 of the 14 towers were removed after pursuing it with authorities and submitting before them the health certificates. The citizens must be aware and they should not wait for another 10 to 20 years like the cancer and carcinogenic revelations,” Chawla, in a long conversation with Herald, said

The Indian telecom sector in the past two decades, has witnessed a phenomenal growth on mobile telephony in particular and has revolutionised the communication sector in India completely. Out of nearly 950 million connections in the country, about 900 million are wireless. This easy and popular wireless telephony has resulted in mushrooming of mobile towers across the length and breadth of the country. With the coming of 4G in India, the growth of mobile towers and the load on Electromagnetic field (EMF) in India will further multiply. But, all comforts do have a price tag attached – health versus unsafe technology.

The awareness for health over technology is still at a nascent stage as the EMF waves emitting from the mobile tower are unseen to human eyes and unfelt on body and the users are only concerned whether they are getting the signals on their mobile device or not. The most stringent EMF exposure norm in the world are in countries like Austria, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Poland etc. India’s norms for EMF are seen much higher than the countries mentioned above. Herald is in possession of the Parliamentary Standing Committee Report on Information Technology 2013-14, which clearly mentions on Page 35 that even after 10 per cent reduction on EMF norms since September 1, 2012, the emission is higher than many countries. (see chart published in Parliamentary Committee Report).

International Commission for Non Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) sets the norms at a very high level compared to the actual levels of radiation prevailing in various countries. Active campaigner for health versus technology in the field of telecom, Prakash Munshi said, “It is a known fact that ICNIRP is an NGO and its origin and structure are not too clear and it is furthermore suspected of having rather close links with the industries dealing in telecom sector whose expansion is shaped by recommendations for maximum threshold values for the different frequencies of electromagnetic fields.”

Juhi Chawla Mehta, who is now an active campaigner for health versus unsafe technology, along with Munshi, have been raising this issue before the Department of Telecom (DoT) that even though India claims to have the most stringent EMF exposure norms in the world, how is it possible that India’s norm is so high? Several open questions have been raised via newspaper advertisements, letters and emails to the DoT.

She added, “We are not against technology development and advancement. What we are concerned about is that it should not adversely affect health and the EMF emission must be under the specified healthy limit. I am more worried as small babies and kids these days play with mobiles as toys.” She apprehends that with the coming of 4G, this problem is likely to accentuate. 

Prakash Munshi speaking to Herald said, “DoT has informed the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Information Technology in 2013 that Indian norms are five to ten times higher than five countries of the world which have much lower set norms. DoT advertised in national dailies in December 2012 of health hazards and precautionary measures from EMF Radiation which said that if you have a choice, use a landline (wired) phone and not a mobile phone. Also ICMR and Ministry of Health studies indicate health hazards from mobile tower radiation for citizen residing 300 meters from antennae.” Munshi added, “Further the distance from the antennae, lower the radiation and hence distance is your friend.”

In a message dated May 31, 2013 to author Harsaran Bir Kaur Pandey the author of “The Radiation Threat”, the then Chief Minister of Gujarat Narendra Modi mentioned, “People at large are not aware of negative effects of building materials used in construction, and the builders are either ignorant or conveniently cunning to consider the environic aspect for well being of the occupants. Microwave and radiation through mobile towers proved killers to the birds and creatures.”

Prajyot Mainkar, a user in Goa feels, “As per the recent reports by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and National Green Tribunal (NGT), the cell-towers radiations do not cause health hazards and cell towers adhere to the norms laid down by WHO and DoT. But no clear reports get shown in terms of upcoming towers and their specifications regarding signal emission. Without the same, it’s hard to predict the nature of adverse effect it could have on health of users. But at the same time, many towers get put up without any prior authorization. This needs to be regulated, checked and surveyed. Cell tower radiation is a common issue but needs to be tackled well.”

This is no longer a choice but a compulsion. If we do not get this, every call could be dial up to disaster.