Hundreds of mobile phones dead in India Gate protests

NEW DELHI, INDIA: Many hundreds of disabled mobile phones. That's an unexpected side-effect of the use of force in the police action against thousands of youth at India Gate and Raisina Hill on December 22 and 23, who were protesting the vicious gang-rape of a 23-year-old student in Delhi last Sunday.

The use of high-impact water cannons by police against young men and women - including many students - at India Gate disabled many hundreds of mobile phones, likely permanently. Much to the shock of the protestors, and the likely delight of the police. "They're killing two birds with one stone," said a Twitter user.

Hemani, a Delhi University student who was near the barricades on Saturday, was stunned by the assault by the police water cannon aimed at the group, used at maximum force. "I was slammed back and fell down," she said. She did not suffer injuries herself, though she says others did, but her new iPhone 4S was soaked, and destroyed.

"I had no time to try and hide it from the water stream, which was aimed at us for over a minute," she said. "The phone was completely dead." She found out on Sunday that repairing it would take three weeks and would cost nearly as much as a new phone.

Sandeep, a young salesman, found his Samsung Note 2 soaked - and similarly destroyed. In his case, the simultaneous use of teargas blinded and choked him and he dropped his phone, also cracking it.

He says that everyone around him found their phones soaked - and completely dead. "The police knew what they were doing," he says. "They kept the water jet aimed at our group for a long time. A short blast would have been enough to scatter us, but it may not have killed our phones."

There has been widespread horror and condemnation of the sustained use of water cannons at maximum force, on winter mornings with the ambient air at 10 degrees Celsius. There has also been global admiration of the young protesters' resilience in continuing in the face of water cannons, teargas and lathi charges.

Mobile phones, however smart and advanced they are, are strongly susceptible to water. Dropping a phone in a puddle is a sure way to kill it, and usually results in maximum damage, causing short-circuiting and onboard electronics failure. Repairs usually need chip replacement, making water damage very expensive. The extreme force of a water cannon is disastrous for a smartphone.

Experts say if you're going for a protest where you expect police action, carry small polythene bags to wrap your phone in, for water cannons are getting increasingly common in India. Raincoats help, too, if you don them and turn your back instantly to the water stream. And avoid carrying expensive electronics in the first place, they add.

To tackle teargas, experts suggest carrying small towels and water to soak them in (or preferably vinegar), and, if available, swimming goggles.

(Prasanto K Roy (twitter @prasanto) is editorial advisor at CyberMedia)