QUESTIONS FROM THE ECONOMIC TIMES FOR SPECIAL FEATURE ON MOBILE RADIATION RELATED CONCERNS

     On Wed, Jan 23, 2013 at 6:11 PM, Prof. Girish Kumar

      Dear Kalyan Parbat,

      It was nice talking to you yesterday. Reply to your questions:

      1. Is radiation from telecom towers injurious to health ? The DoT claims
      India's EMF exposure norms are among the most stringent in the world and
      conform to the global safety standards set by WHO and ICNIRP? Do you agree ?
      If not, why and which countries have adopted even more stringent mobile tower radiation norms
      than  India ? Please give examples. Have such regulations undermined
      the quality of mobile coverage in those countries ?

      Radiation from telecom towers is injurious to health depending upon the
      signal strength and exposure time. Please see Slide 37 of attached file.

      India has adopted 1/10th of ICNIRP guidelines, which comes out to be
      470 milliwatts/sq.m for GSM900 and 920 milliwatts/sq.m for GSM1800.
      The most stringent norm in the world is adopted by Austria, which is
      1.0 milliwatts/sq.m. Please see Slide 23.

      ICNIRP guidelines are only for short term exposure and not for long term.
      In fact, it is only for 6 minutes. Please see Slide 19. So, 1/10th is
      valid only for 60 minutes = 1 hour per day.
      For example, FCC Guidelines are (Please see Slide 20):
      Safe Power density = f/300 averaged over 6 min exposure.
      Safe power density = f/1500 averaged over 30 min exposure.
      Time of exposure increased by 5 times, Safe power density decrease by 5 times.

      In other countries, they use larger number of low power trasnmitters.

      2. Both the Department of Telecom (DoT) and the Inter-Ministerial Committee
      on EMF radiation claim there is no convincing scientific evidence that
      radiation from cellphone towers and wireless networks cause adverse health effects ? In fact, the IMC   
report notes that although some studies have
      reportedly linked EMF radiation and health disorders -- ie effects on cell growth, cell differentiation, on DNA, immune system, hormonal effects,
      side-affects on reproduction, neurological, cardiovascular systems --
      it says these conclusions were deemed inconclusive as these studies were
      few and far between. Please comment.

      There are plenty of scientific evidence that radiation from cellphone towers and wireless networks cause adverse health effects.

      I had submitted report to Secretary, DOT in Dec. 2010 and had given
      references of nearly 200 scientific/technical papers showing adverse effects.

      Expert Group of 10 people in India submitted a report on "Impacts of Communication Towers on Wildlife including Birds and Bees" to environment Ministry in Nov.
      2011. They went through 919 scientific/technical papers:
      Out of 919 papers, 593 papers report Impact, 130 reported No Impact,
      and  196 Inconclusive. Please see Slide 35.

      Similarly Bio-Initiative report 2012 preapred by 29 scientists from
      10 countries went through 1800 papers, and mentioned with certaintity
      adverse effects.

      It all depends upon which side of the coin one wants to see.

      3. Some health experts claim mobile tower radiation is not harmful as it
      is weak and non-ionising due to its inability to break ordinary chemical
      bonds ? Do you agree ? If not, why?

      Continuous exposure to mobile tower radiation is harmful even at a level
      of 1.0 milliwatts/sq.m over 5 to 10 years. Please see Slides 25, 31 and 36.

      4. You had earlier reportedly suggested that mobile radiation hazards can
      be checked in India by increasing the number and height of the towers to
      reduce power signals and consequent harm. But don't you think this may be hard to sustain in the long  
      run amid complaints that towers are already
      marring the skyline?

      Mobile tower radiation hazards can be checked in India by increasing the number of the towers 
      and each roof top or tower should transmit max.
      1 to 2W of power. Please see Slide 43. People have to decide whether they want to have cell 
      phone connectivity or too much radiation or too many
      towers or may be, more land lines or fiber optic connectivity, and so on.


      5. Do you believe DoT's stress on tower infrastructure sharing threatens
      to raise mobile radiation levels ?

      Tower infrastructure sharing is acceptable provided combined transmitted
      power is max. 1 to 2W.

      6. Can radiation levels be reduced by mobile phone companies below the
      current permissible level without compromising on mobile coverage ?

      Radiation levels can be reduced simply by reducing the gain of the
      power amplifier or by removing the power amplifier by mobile phone companies. This will affect 
      the connectivity for some time. Govt should
      announce that this is being done for protecting the health of the people.
      In the mean time, operators can install more low power transmitting towers. (Please see Slides 43 to 45).

      As of now, there are 5 Lakh towers, we may need another 5 lakhs
      towers. Each tower costs around 15 lakhs, which will require total
      investment of Rs. 75,000 crores. To save that, operators are resisting
      tougher radiation norms. However, this cost can be recovered in 3 years
      simply by increasing price per minute usage by 5 paise (Rs. 0.05).

    
      Subject: QUESTIONS FROM THE ECONOMIC TIMES FOR SPECIAL 

      FEATURE ON MOBILE  RADIATION RELATED CONCERNS

      Professor Girish Kumar,
      Dept of Electrical Engineering
      IIT, Mumbai
      Jan 22, 2013

      Dear Professor Kumar,

      It was wonderful speaking with you this afternoon. As discussed, I am working on an ET 
      special feature on health concerns relating to telecom towers -- fact or
      fiction ?
      Below are my questions. I will need your responses by 7 pm tomorrow as we have a very tight
      deadline. Since you are among the most nationally renowned campaigners
      against
      radiation, I am really looking forward to your perspectives to bring out the real story.

      Warm regards,
      Kalyan Parbat
      Assistant Telecom Editor
      The Economic Times


      Questions:

      1. Is radiation from telecom towers injurious to health ? The DoT claims India's EMF 
      exposure norms are among the most stringent in the world and conform to the
      global safety
      standards set by WHO and ICNIRP  ? Do you agree ?
       If not, why and which countries have adopted even more stringent mobile tower radiation
      norms than India ? Please give examples.  Have such regulations
      undermined the
      quality of mobile coverage in those countries ?

      2. Both the Department of Telecom (DoT) and the Inter-Ministerial Committee on 
     EMF radiation claim there is no convincing scientific evidence  that radiation from
      cellphone
      towers and wireless networks cause adverse health effects ? In fact, the IMC  report notes
      that although some studies have reportedly linked EMF radiation and
      health
      disorders -- ie effects on cell growth, cell differentiation, on DNA, immune system, hormonal 
      effects, side-affects on reproduction, neurological, cardiovascular
      systems --
      it says these conclusions were deemed inconclusive as these studies were few and far between.
      Please comment.

      3. Some health experts claim mobile tower radiation is not harmful as it is weak and 
          non-ionising due to its inability to break ordinary chemical bonds ? Do you
      agree ? If
      not, why?

      4. You had earlier reportedly suggested that mobile radiation hazards can be checked in 
         India by increasing the number and height of the towers to reduce power
      signals and
      consequent harm. But don't you think this may be hard to sustain in the long run amid
      complaints that towers are already marring the skyline?

      5. Do you believe DoT's stress on tower infrastructure sharing threatens to raise mobile radiation levels ?

      6. Can radiation levels be reduced by mobile phone companies below the current permissible
        level without compromising on mobile coverage ?
           ------------------------------------------------------

Red alert as radiation plug bid fails

By Subhro Niyogi, TNN | Jan 29, 2013

KOLKATA: The TOI report on Karnani Mansion residents being subjected to dangerously high levels of cell-tower radiation brought the telecom infrastructure firm that owns and operates the towers scrambling to the Park Street address on a damage control mission on Monday.

But even as the technicians went about trying to reduce the radiation, a group of activists followed them with a radiation-level meter that mostly stayed red - dangerously high - and sometimes yellow. But never once did the meter glow green - safe.

The Association for Protection of Democratic Rights (APDR) has decided to move the state human rights commission to protect the 300-odd residents of Karnani Mansion. Two hundred of them are children.

TOI talked to one of the dozen technicians on damage control mode. "We have been working here since Sunday to determine the intensity of power transmitted from the towers and reduce it without affecting service so that those residing nearby are not harmed," he said, refusing to disclose his name or spell out the remedial actions.

Sources said men contracted by Indus Towers - the company that owns and operates most telecom towers in Kolkata and elsewhere in India - were trying to adjust the direction of the GSM antennas to temporarily reduce the intensity of power.

When TOI contacted Indus official Himon Sanyal, who is in charge of cell sites in the state, he refused to comment, saying: "I am not authorized to speak."

The technicians' attempts failed as there are just too many antennas - 40, of which 26 are GSM and the rest microwave.

Tapas Das, who has been campaigning on the issue for several years, found high intensity radiation in the south-east corner of the roof and other pockets. The gadget - manufactured by IIT Mumbai to detect the radiation intensity as per the Bio-Initiative Report - persistently flashed red, signalling high intensity.

"The entire southern half of the terrace has high level of radiation that is a health hazard in the short-term. The rest of the terrace has medium radiation where prolonged exposure can cause health hazard. But since women and children are living in the radiation zone 24x7, the threat is magnified," said Das.

IIT Bombay professor and cell radiation expert Girish Kumar, who has been studying the effects of non-ionizing radiation for a decade, warned that people living in the high intensity radiation zone were in danger of suffering infertility, miscarriage and cancer. "Beginning with headache, irritation, lack of concentration and memory loss, the problem gets complicated with continued exposure over time," he said.

According to Kumar, standards adopted by various countries show that telecom coverage is possible at much lower levels. "We must reduce transmitted power at once. The coverage area will shrink, requiring companies to put up more towers or install repeaters. The firms are aware of the health risk, but ignore it because acknowledging the problem will mean additional investments," the IIT professor said.

Very few cell sites comply with the new government guideline of 0.92 watt/sq m set. But since this exposure to radiation is safe for 60 minutes a day, 24-hour exposure means exceeding the safety limit 12 times.

Pushpa Mullick, who lives right under a tower with several antennas, has been suffering from chronic sleeplessness and stomach ailment. "The problems kicked off after the towers were installed," she said.

S Vijaya, who lives within 10 metres of a tower with the maximum cluster of antennas, suffers from sleeplessness and wakes up with a throbbing head each morning. "Since the quarters are small, we have to sleep out. Such is the noise from the tower's generator room that I have developed hearing problems," he said.

There are no barriers on the roof to mark out the hazard zones. Only the warning sign: 'Beyond this point, radio frequency fields exist that exceed rules for human exposure' is fixed everywhere on the terrace - even on the roof of the very houses where families have been living for decades.

Ranjit Sur, APDR secretary (BBD Bag branch), said the situation at Karnani Mansion was a glaring example of human rights violation and callous attitude of government in radiation matters. "We have decided to take the matter to West Bengal Human Rights Commission as a serious modern day rights issue. We will also take up the matter with state, civil and police administration," he said.

TOI Kolkata, Jan. 25, 2013

TOI Kolkata, Jan. 25, 2013 Kids in radiation cauldron on Park Street Cellphone Towers On Karnani Mansion Emit Nearly The Same Amount Of Radiation As A 500W Microwave,24x7 Subhro Niyogi TNN Kolkata: Around 200 children many of them toddlers are living in a virtual microwave oven atop Karnani Mansion on Park Street. Hemmed in by 40 cellular antennas that together transmit nearly 500 watt of power round-the-clock, the kids suffer constant headache, nausea, sleeplessness and fall ill with alarming regularity, say families who live in the complex. The terrace of Karnani Mansion houses 80 staff quarters with an average of five residents per dwelling. Radiation experts warn that if the antennas are not dismantled, the children will develop chronic health problems, even cancer. Four-year-old Divya Sardar twists and turns all night and becomes violently ill frequently. She is just back from hospital after a bout of diarrhoea. Shes been frail and sickly since birth. Theres not been a single days relief from headache, said her mother Rani. It isnt just Divya who wakes up with a throbbing head. So do Joy Sardar (6), Ananya Sardar (8), Md Faiyaz Akhtar (9), Rahul Dubey (10) and all other children on the roof of the six-storied mansion. The headache is acute in the morning and late afternoon. I cannot concentrate in class and am always irritable, said Ananya, who has a strip of cloth tied on her forehead. Every boy and girl here has headache. There is no respite even in school, said Faiyaz. Most of the kids study at Harrow Hall, located in Karnani Mansion. Paediatrician Santanu Roy explains headache warned that prolonged exposure to radiation from cellular antennas is extremely harmful for children. The problem gets complicated with continued exposure over time as infertility, miscarriage and cancer is reported in larger numbers. Girish Kumar of IIT-Mumbai,who has been working on cellular radiation for over a decade, says the 40 antennas installed (24 GSM and 16 microwave antennas belonging to all cellular companies) generate around 480 watt power round-theclock. Thats as much as a microwave oven that uses 500 watt. With 70% of the human body and 90% of the brain comprising fluids, such exposure is damning for health of children and adults, said Kumar. While the Department of Telecommunication prescribes a minimum buffer of 35 metres between a tower with two antennas and a residential or work zone (40 m when there are four antennas and 70 m when 10-12 antennas); the men women and children on Karnani Mansions roof live and play within 10m of 40 antennas. Rekha Rao, who moved to Karnani Mansion terrace after marriage five years ago, says she had never suffered from headache and swollen throat earlier. When I lived in Shibpur, Howrah, these ailments were not there. It happened only after moving here and I think these antennas have got something to do with it, she said. Shanti Sardar, whose son Tapan died mysteriously a year ago, leaving behind his young wife Rani and daughter Divya, blames the antennas and the devices installed on the roof since 2006. Ever since the antennas were installed, theres been health trouble in every family. Tapan used to sleep on the terrace and died in sleep one night. Most of the people living in the quarters are poor. We have no voice. If we protest, we face eviction, said Sardar. Fatima Ghosh, a resident on fifth floor, does care and has raised the issue with the residents association. Those living on the terrace are poor and insecure, and hence, vulnerable to exploitation, she said in frustration. Association president Murli Punjabi brushed off responsibility, saying the residents did not have any say as it concerned the resident and the cellular operators alone. Chander Karnanai, the proprietor, is undeterred. If there is medical proof that the antennas are affecting people and a formal complaint is made, I will think about removing it. Till then, it is a legitimate revenue stream, he said. A senior official of a telecom firm felt no antenna should have been atop Karnani Mansion. You will find antennas atop only Karnani Mansion and Stephen Court, the two buildings that have poor management. There is none atop Queens Mansion or Park Mansion, he pointed out. Rajan Mathews, DG of Cellular Operators Association of India, said: Antennas are not supposed to be installed next to living quarters. The matter should be brought to the notice of the Telecom, Enforcement, Resource & Monitoring cell of DoT.