Villagers blame cell tower radiation for cancer deaths

Tirupati: Once the villagers of Laddigam suspected that 20 deaths that occurred last year due to cancer, they approached government authorities to find out what was causing the disease. The government sent medical officers to the village to assess the situation.  

Chittoor District Collector P.S. Pradyumna requested SVIMS to investigate if there is a ‘Cancer Cluster’ in the village of Laddigam. Villagers say radiation emitted from a cell tower, which is situated in the heart of the village is the source of the problem. They have listed this in their complaint to the government revenue and medical authorities.

“The villagers gave a complaint to the tahsildar stating that the series of deaths was due to cancer related diseases. They mentioned that they are being subjected to radiation emitting from the cell tower, which was built in the middle of a residential area in this hamlet. The exact reason is yet to be found and we believe that cancer was not prevalent here before. Anyhow, we are waiting for the report from SVIMS authorities and will act accordingly," said Mr Ramagiddaiah, District Medical and Health Officer.

Health experts who visited the village believe that air contamination is one of the reasons for cancer prevalence here, as the farmers use high-power pesticides, which are highly poisonous and contaminate the air.