19% of telecom towers are operated by hybrid power: Idea Cellular

Aditya Birla-owned Idea Cellular today said that over 19 percent of telecom towers are operated by hybrid power, reducing Co2 emissions by 52,000 tons per annum in 2016

The company said that it had shown 100 percent compliance on EMF (electro-magnetic frequency) norms as a part of its first GRI-G4 Sustainability Report to showcase achievements and outline a roadmap for 2021.

The company has also launched its first standalone sustainability report as 'Calling Tomorrow 2016 which outlines of its achievements so far.

According to Himanshu Kapania, Managing Director, Idea Cellular, "Sustainability at Idea Cellular is the holistic pursuit of a vision to be the most admired telecom company that creates long-term value for all stakeholders by balancing economic growth with environmental and social development."

Kapania further added, "Access to information has a significant impact on livelihoods, better healthcare, education, environment and community empowerment. Being at the centre of this transformation, Idea has a significant opportunity to bring technology, networks, and expertise of our people to create sustained value for all our stakeholders, customers, community and the society at large."

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The company said that it had no or zero cases of child labour and zero human rights violations in 2016 with one-third of young leaders in Idea were women.

Idea Money operations expanded to 2 million customers in its goal towards digital financial empowerment, according to its report.

Idea's sustainability roadmap and execution cover 13 of the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs), the key framework for responsible businesses across the world.

Anil Tandan, Chief Technology & Sustainability Officer, Idea Cellular, "We are focused on our commitment to reaching the farthest corners of the country and continuously increasing the reach of our network. Hence our approach to business, in line with the Group ethos, is to think about tomorrow, today. We are building an organization and a business with a strong focus on "Calling tomorrow". This defines our Sustainability strategy, which ensures that we take a long-term view and build an organization that is future ready."

Idea's network reaches nearly a billion people through a network of 241,540 sites across over 400,000 towns and villages.