Residents of Gunna Thotavalasa village in Bobbili mandal have alleged that Reliance Communications, with 30-strong police personnel on guard, erected a 4G cell tower at the centre of Indiramma Colony without obtaining permission from the panchayat.
Memorandum
CPI (M) divisional secretary Reddy Venu, who submitted a memorandum on their behalf to Joint Collector B. Rama Rao at the Grievance Cell on Monday, said that police set up a picket at the work site to avert untoward incidents while the company engaged labour from outside for the erection work on June 4.
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When the villagers opposed erection of the tower, the police arrested them he alleged and said that Reliance representatives had claimed that they had the Collector’s permission.
Stating that it was a clear violation of Apex Court orders that banned erection of cell towers in the midst of residential areas, Mr. Venu feared that radiation from the tower would affect pregnant women and children.
Voltage fluctuations
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Moreover, he opposed the supply of power to the tower from a domestic transformer on the ground that it would lead to voltage fluctuations.
He demanded that the cell tower be relocated on the outskirts of village.