This morning, on the bus headed south from Sadashivnagar, there were 22 commuters (I counted.) Eight women, two high school girls, the rest men, some well-dressed (and carrying laptops) while a few were obviously daily wage workers carrying carpentry tools. At one point, eight of the 22 were talking on their mobiles; two were particularly loud and noisy, while the rest were adding to the din even if they were using normal decibels.

Given the already existing ambient noises, of passing traffic, impatient horning, and roadside clatter, I could have happily throttled those chatterers on the mobiles for adding to the cacophony. Four of these conversations I could hear clearly as they were passengers sitting around me. None of the conversation seemed urgent or important.

The ‘shouting man’ at the back was merely telling his caller that he was “near Mekhri Circle and should reach Majestic in half hour or so”. Given the traffic, it could be 30, or 40, or even 45 minutes (or, if there is road digging going on, it could even be an extra 15 minutes). So what was the point in saying “in another half hour or so”? Was it so important to use the mobile?

The schoolgirl too pulled out her mobile and was chatting with a classmate she had left just 10 minutes ago, to say that she was planning to do her homework only after seeing a movie in the evening.

Once upon a time all public buses used to have a painted warning prohibiting the use of mobiles. It has apparently been taken off, since no one observes the rule anyway. On the bus I was on, even the driver pulled out his mobile and was chatting away and smiling, during a particularly crowded stretch of traffic, endangering our lives if his attention was not focused on his driving.

Returning from a flight from Mumbai, I saw several passengers whip out their mobiles even before the doors were opened for alighting, just to tell their families that they “have just landed” and should be home, in — what? Half hour? One hour? Maybe two? So what was the point in phoning?

Mobiles are a great boon in situations of emergency or urgency, but have become a social nuisance, the way they are used today.

Next week’s Saturday will be World Telecom Day. To mark the occasion, a daylong seminar is being organised in Hyderabad by the Centre for Telecom Management and Studies (CTMS). One of the topics to be discussed is the urgent need for educating the public on the proper use of the mobile.

As Dr T H Choudary, director of CTMS points out in the organisation’s journal (March 2008 issue — http://www.ctms-bharat.org) from well-dressed professionals to drivers and mazdoors, everyone misuses the cellphone, causing social annoyance and disturbance.

People use cellphones in lifts (as if they can’t wait to get out in 30 seconds), during meetings, even concerts and (worst of all) even inside aircraft — when there are explicit instructions not to use them because this could interfere with the airplane’s signals and endanger the passengers.

Social etiquette demands that one should apologise even if a landline rings, when one has company, but etiquette has been dumped completely by the mobile generation.

The ring tones annoy, disturb, interrupt and, in general, cause nuisance, but does anyone care? Isn’t it time we learn to use gadgets properly, when modern technology comes into our hands?

A sharp knife in the hands of a goonda can cause harm. In the hands of a surgeon it can be a lifesaver too. Similarly, it is necessary not to use the mobile in a manner that causes annoyance to others.

There is also the medical dimension — the possibility of endangering oneself too. Medical opinion is still divided on the long-term safety of heavy mobile use. The latest issue (March-April 2008) of Insight, the consumer protection magazine published by CERC of Ahmedabad (www.cercindia.org, e-mail cerc@cercindia.org), says that using a cellphone before bedtime may cause insomnia and headache.

A radiation expert, who has made an in-depth study of cellphones, advises that radiation from cellphones, even if low, can cause health problems after 10-12 years of use.

The family of one woman in the US, who developed a brain tumour on the side of the head she used to hold the mobile on, has sued for massive compensation.

Other studies say children in particular (including adolescents) should not use mobiles for lengthy conversations. But I have seen school kids do homework over the mobile, for hours.

SMS is a better option for urgent communications. Why then do we use the mobile so indiscriminately, for frivolous conversations too, in situations that cause annoyance to others, on buses, in concert halls, while driving, etc? (Mobile use while at the wheel is in fact a legal offence.)

As Dr Choudary observes, mobiles are becoming a menace. A gentleman is one who is considerate to others, he adds, suggesting that HR departments of IT and other companies should instill mobile etiquette in their employees.

How about schools and colleges too giving some lessons on mobile etiquette, do’s and don’ts?