It happened almost overnight. A contractor moved into a vacant lot at Chitarr Trace, Mohess Road, Debe, and began clearing land to erect a cell tower. But with no prior consultation and fears of possible radiation contamination, residents got together and staged a protest demanding immediate termination of the project.
For two days last week, villagers gathered at the vacant site, saying they would not allow a cell tower to be erected near their homes because of health concerns.
President of the Chitarr Trace Village Council, Ramhit Bhimsingh, said the telecommunications company had no respect for the people of Penal and Debe. "They came into our village and began this project almost overnight...They never had the courtesy to speak to us about it," he said. "We checked with the Environmental Management Authority, the Town and Country Planning and the Penal Debe Regional Corporation and no permission was granted for this," Bhimsingh said.
He added that the contractor who was clearing the land later packed up his equipment and left, but an official from the telecommunications company said the project would go on. Villager Sam Ramphal warned that residents would waste no time in breaking down the tower if it was erected. "We will not jeopardise our safety," he declared. Secretary of the Mohess Road and Environment Community Council, Andrew Chitawan, and Welfare Officer Angela Chitawan joined the protest, saying they would work assiduously to protect the health and safety of residents.
Chairman of the Penal/Debe Regional Corporation Premchand Sookoo confirmed yesterday that the corporation had not given permission to erect a cell tower. As the councillor for the area, Sookoo said more than 500 residents would be affected if the tower was erected. He said company officials contacted him requesting a meeting, but he invited them to also meet with the village representatives. Sookoo said there were several sites between Chitarr Trace and Monkey Town better suited for erection of the cell tower. Efforts to contact the company were futile as calls went unanswered.