Claim : A notice issued by the Department of Telecommunications(DoT) claims to install a mobile tower at the recipient’s location and seeks ₹2,500 as agreement fees.
Conclusion : The claim is false. The NOC is fake and seems to be a part of a scam used for money extortion. There has been no such notice issued by the Department of Telecommunications and government sources have debunked this.
Rating : Totally False 
A notice has been circulating that is allegedly issued by the Department of Telecommunications, claiming to install a mobile tower and seeks ₹2,500 as agreement fees. The document claims permission to install a BSNL 5G mobile tower on the recipient’s property, congratulates them on site selection, and demands ₹2,500 as an “agreement charge” to proceed. It references entities like Bharat Door Sanchar Mantralaya and includes seals and signatures while citing the “Telecom Act 2017”. See the notice below.
FACT CHECK
DigitEYE India decided to investigate this claim and found that it is false. The notice is fake and has been dubunked by official government sources. Moreover, the DoT has clearly stated in its public advisory that such scams should be reported to the police.
We first conducted a web search with the phrase “Notice issued by Department of Telecommunications tower installation at ₹2,500” to learn more about the claim. The search took us to the public advisory that sheds light on the frauds related to installation of mobile towers.
The advisory states how “some unscrupulous companies/ agencies/ individuals cheat general public and collect money by promising them hefty monthly rental etc. in the name of installation of Mobile Towers.” Moreover, point 1 clearly states that “DOT/ TRAI is not directly or indirectly involved in leasing/renting the premises for installation of mobile towers.” View a screenshot of this below –
Following this, we came across another public notice issued by the DoT on the same issue. The notice speaks about how scammers are “asking people to deposit amounts of money… as Security deposit/Application fees/Registration fees/Stamp duty…” among others. The notice cautions people and menions that if a company does ask such an advance fee, then “public is hereby advised to be more cautious and approach local police authority”. View a screenshot of the notice below –
Back on December 6, 2025, the Free Press Journal had also reported about similar warnings of fraudulent activities issued by the DoT. Similarly, the Economic Times in their report published on October 2, 2025 shed light on how fake and fraudulent letters were being circulated pertaining to installation of 5G mobile towers in the name of TRAI.
Again on Sept. 4, 2024, newsonair also published about this similar fraud scheme related to the installation of mobile towers.
PIB’s fact check unit has officially debunked this claim in an X post dated January 11, 2026. The post mentions how “A #FAKE NOC allegedly issued by Dept Of Telecommunications claims to install mobile tower at recipient’s location & seeks ₹2,500 as agreement fees.” There has been no certificate issued by DoT and this notice is fabricated.
🚨Be wary of mobile tower installation frauds🚨
A #FAKE NOC allegedly issued by Dept Of Telecommunications claims to install mobile tower at recipient’s location & seeks ₹2,500 as agreement fees#PIBFactCheck:
❌@DoT_India has issued NO such certificate
🚨 Stay informed and… pic.twitter.com/mtDfowg3u6
— PIB Fact Check (@PIBFactCheck) January 11, 2026
Thus, the notice is false.
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