Civic chief orders inspection of telecom towers coming up in gardens across city

However, officials from the gardens department said that the civic body has given the go-ahead for installing telecom towers across 400 gardens in the city. With a conservative estimate of 4 sqmt of open space being occupied per tower, this would render inaccessible at least 1,600sqm of the city’s scarce open spaces.

Officials from Reliance Jio, the telecom company that will be installing the towers, as part of its attempts to extend pan-India 4G services, have begun inspecting gardens.

The move has been met with stiff oppositions from local residents. For instance, last week, residents in Borivali’s IC Colony and Bandra stepped in to stop construction of a platform, atop which the towers will be installed, in gardens in their vicinity and corporators were roped in and the crane operators and workers were asked to leave the premises.

In December, residents living close to Devidayal garden in Mulund raised a similar objection. The garden, which is opposite the BEST depot, is surrounded by residential buildings. While Reliance Jio did not confirm this survey , an official statement from Reliance Jio stated, “All towers will be built in conformity with approvals.”

“How can our open spaces be utilised for such purposes. First, a telecom tower, next will be an electric substation. Where do we draw the line? As it is we have very few open spaces,” said Mahabir Urs, a resident. “Why can’t they erect these towers atop government buildings and BEST areas?”

Civic activists believe that installing telecom towers in open spaces near residential buildings is an easier route to surpass seeking 70 percent of residents’ consent had the company tried to install the towers in a residential building.

“When the state disallows towers atop hospitals and schools for health reasons, how can they justify allowing towers in public gardens, frequented by children and senior citizens. Erecting such towers will further reduce open spaces, the availability of which is already a dismal 1.24 sqm of space per person “ said Nayana Kathpalia, trustee, NAGAR. She added that mandatory warning signs around these structures will act as a deterrent to citizens and negate the purpose of proving a recreational space. In its letter to the CM, NAGAR has urged him to withdraw permission for installing 4G cell towers on ‘non-buildable’ reserved areas.

Meanwhile, the gardens department said that the proposals to erect the towers were sanctioned by the standing committee, following which, the building proposals sought recommendations from the gardens department to erect towers in their gardens. “Reliance Jio has permission to install the tower. These towers are a requirement of the public and they cannot come up on roads, so they need to come up on hills or other open spaces. There is no misuse of open space as only a small part of the garden will be used,” said Vijay Hire, superintendent of gardens.

In response to detailed questioning by Newsline, Reliance Jio cited the Gujarat High Court order that states that base stations for wireless data and mobile communications pose no threat to health if prescribed norms are followed. “The towers are totally safe. In Jio, we are engineering and testing a world-class broadband network, and in developing a suite of compelling and synergistic digital services,” read the statement which, however, did not reply to questions pertaining to the extent of open spaces such towers will occupy.