NUISANCE WITH REGARDS TO MOBILE

TOWERS AND THE PROVISIONS UNDER VARIOUS STATUTE

PRESENTED BY :AISH MEHTA- 24

DHWANISH PATEL-29BBA.LLB(HONS.)

WHAT IS NUISANCE?

The word “nuisance” is derived from the French word “nuire”, which means “to do hurt, or to annoy”. One in possession of a property is entitled as per law to undisturbed enjoyment of it. If someone else’s improper use in his property results into an unlawful interference with his use or enjoyment of that property or of some right over, or in connection with it, we may say that tort of nuisance occurred. In other words, Nuisance is an unlawful interference with a person’s use or enjoyment of land, or of some right over, or in connection with it. Nuisance is an injury to the right of a person in possession of a property to undisturbed enjoyment of it and result from an improper use by another person in his property.

Stephen defined nuisance to be “anything done to the hurt or annoyance of the lands, tenements of another, and not amounting to a trespass.”

PUBLIC NUISANCE

The term public nuisance covers a wide variety of minor crimes that threaten the health, morals, safety, comfort, convenience, or welfare of a community. Violators may be punished by a criminal sentence, a fine, or both.

 If the individual suffers harm that is different from that suffered by the general public, the individual may maintain a TORT ACTION for damages. For example, if dynamiting has thrown a large boulder onto a public highway, those who use the highway cannot maintain a nuisance action for the inconvenience. However, a motorist who is injured from colliding with the boulder may bring a tort action for personal injuries.

PRIVATE NUISANCE

A private nuisance is an interference with a person's enjoyment and use of his land. The law recognizes that landowners, or those in rightful possession of land, have the right to the unimpaired condition of the property and to reasonable comfort and convenience in its occupation.

Examples of private nuisances abound. Nuisances that interfere with the physical condition of the land include vibration or blasting that damages a house; destruction of crops; raising of a water table; or the pollution of soil, a stream, or an underground water supply.

NUISANCE WITH REGARD TO MOBILE TOWERS

Nuisance with regard to mobile towers are Public nuisance because a public nuisance interferes with the public as a class, not merely one person or a group of citizens.

Recently Juhu housing society recently says that Mobile phone towers are causing health problems.

Radiation from mobile phone towers causes glioma, a type of brain cancer, as reported by the committee before the World Health Organisation.  “The international agency for research on cancer has also established that the mobile phone towers are very powerful towers causing different diseases to the persons residing within 50 metres of the mobile towers.” The petition also submitted: “The radiation values and norms in other countries are more stringent and the exposure allowed is much lower but in our country there is no specific rules and no norms for residential areas, schools, offices, hospitals and playgrounds have been laid down to stop radiation exposure.”

RELEVANT CASES:

Jogi Ram vs R.R. Jowel And Ors on 7 October, 2013-The petitioner had approached this Court by way of a writ petition alleging nuisance on account of mobile tower located in the residential area and in the immediate vicinity of his house. It was his grievance that this mobile tower would often run with the assistance of a generator which created nuisance, air pollution and noise pollution. This Court had directed the competent authority to look into the grievance of the petitioner.

In New Delhi - A mobile tower has become the bone of contention between two neighbours. After a man complained that a mobile tower and generator on the roof of his neighbour's house were creating "nuisance and disturbance", a trial court has directed the landowner to remove the tower and generator from his building. Refusing to grant relief to the owner of the building, additional sessions judge T R Naval upheld an executive magistrate's order for removal of the tower and generator from there.

STEPS TAKEN DELHI HIGH COURTTO REDUCE NUISANCE

The Delhi High Court has taken a step towards reducing the number of mobile phone towers in residential buildings. A public interest litigation has been issued to the Delhi government to bar the installation of mobile phone towers on residential buildings. This move has been made in the light of apprehensions that radiations from these towers could be carcinogenic.  A division bench of Acting Chief Justice A.K. Sikri and Justice Rajiv Sahai Endlaw also issued notice to the health ministry and the department of telecommunications. They also sought their response by Aug 9, the next date of hearing. The petition by A.S. Jain said that mobile phone towers should not be installed on residential buildings and at public places as recommended by the report of an inter-ministerial committee headed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.