Emergencies in public domain

Department of Atomic Energy is the identified nodal agency in respect of manmade Nuclear/Radiological emergencies in public domain.

Radiation injuries following radiation exposure can be treated in any hospital having good nursing care and facilities for transfusion of blood/blood products.  Such hospital will be designated as 'Radiation Injuries Treatment Centres' during radiation emergency. So far, there are no hospitals in India designated exclusively for handing of Chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) disasters/emergencies. Department of Atomic Energy has till date, trained about 580 doctors from DAE, Civil/State management hospitals and defence services as well as 72 nurses from DAE for management of radiation emergencies.  It is understood that similar courses for chemical and biological emergencies are being conducted by DRDO.

Further 479 doctors of various hospitals in various parts of the country have attended training workshops conducted by BARC-NPCIL on 'Planning, Preparedness and Response to Radiation Emergencies for medical officers' from 1995-2010.

Department of Atomic Energy at their Emergency Response Centers and NDRF (NDMA), have following items stored in different parts of the country:

Stock of Iodine prophylaxis :  10 Lakhs
Protective Clothing:200 Nos
Respirators:200 Nos
Radiation Monitors:300 Nos
Portable Personal Decontamination Units PPDU): 5 Nos

In addition, Department of Atomic Energy is having the above items at various nuclear facilities for their radiation protection/emergency preparedness.

Radiation Effect of Mobile Antenna / Tower, H.T. Lines

1. HT Lines transmit electricity at low (50Hz) frequencies and do not emit electromagnetic radiation.  They generate time varying electric and magnetic fields.
2. At the ground level below overhead transmission line, the electric & magnetic fields respectively are only millivolt per meter or micro Tesla level.
3. Several International studies have been carried out and generally conclude that there are no known health risks that have been conclusively demonstrated to be caused by high voltage power lines.
4. There is no proven health effect from electric and magnetic fields from HT lines, so no guidelines are available.  Safe working distances are recommended keeping the electrical hazards in view.
5. There are no national/international regulatory bodies which prescribe limits for radiations emitted by communication towers. However, as a part of caution, International Commission on Non-ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) prescribes the RF and microwave exposure levels of 1 and 5 mW/cm  for general public and occupational worker respectively in 400 – 2000 MHz frequency band.
6. The roof mounted antenna installations of height more than 10 m do not pose risk as the radiation exposure is well below the levels prescribed by the International health guidelines to the general population. Till date no conclusive health risks have been established for RF and microwave radiation used in mobile telecommunication by the international scientific studies for the general public.
7. Radiation safety issues related to cell tower installations do not fall under the purview of Department of Atomic Energy (DAE).  Additional information related to non-ionizing radiation safety can be obtained from ICNIRP website.

Radiation Emergency (operates 24x7)

Emergency Communication Centre (ECR) of Crisis Management Group (CMG),
DAE, Anushakti Bhawan, Mumbai

Tel:022 2202 3978 / 2283 0441 / 2286 2595
Fax:022 2283 0441
Email:  daeecr@dae.gov.in