COIMBATORE: Coimbatore Consumer Cause(CCC) submitted a petition to the Tamil Nadu Electricity Regulatory Commission chairman R Manivannan, urging him not to give power connections to mobile towers if the mobile company does not have a valid approval from the collector.
K Kathirmathiyon, CCC secretary stated that after consultation with the stakeholder department including energy and environment, as per a government order (GO) (Ms) No. 4, January 25, 2022, it is mandatory for mobile companies to obtain licence from the concerned district collectors to erect a mobile tower as per Tamil Nadu Telecom Infrastructure Policy, 2022 of Information Technology (E1).
He added, “As per the Rules, before initiation/starting of any project, the Telecom Service Providers (TSP) should get approval from the District Nodal Officer (District Collector). However, 100s of mobile towers have received power connection from TNERC Distribution Code, without proper licenses, as TNERC officials are also not aware of this rule.”
He further said that some TNERC officials are stating that there are no such requirements in the TNERC Distribution Code, and they are giving connections under Tariff V just based on the ownership/lease of the property. The provisions in Tamil Nadu Telecom Infrastructure Policy, 2022, and relevant rules in the Tamil Nadu Combined Development and Building Rules, 2019 (Rule 62 Telecommunication Structures) should be implemented strictly in establishing Telecom Infrastructure.