MOBILE TOWER / ROOFTOP LEASE AGREEMENT
BETWEEN
__________, __________, of __________ (the "Lessor", which expression includes its successors in interest and permitted assigns);
AND
__________, __________, of __________ (the "Lessee", which expression includes its successors in interest and permitted assigns).
The Lessor and the Lessee are each a "Party" and together the "Parties".
RECITALS
C. The Parties record the terms of that lease in this Agreement.
NOW THIS LEASE WITNESSES as follows.
- 1. THE SITE AND PERMITTED USE
1.3 The Lessee shall have exclusive possession of the Site for the Term, subject to the Lessor's rights of access under Clause 14.
- 2. TERM AND RENEWAL
- 3. RENT
- 4. SECURITY DEPOSIT
4.2 The Lessor shall refund the security deposit, without interest, within thirty days of the later of the expiry or termination of this Lease and the Lessee vacating the Site and completing its obligations under Clause 21 (Removal and Restoration), less only the reasonable documented cost of Rent or other amounts then due from the Lessee and unpaid, and the reasonable documented cost of anything the Lessee was obliged to do under Clause 21 and did not.
- 5. TAXES
5.1 Every amount payable under this Lease is exclusive of goods and services tax. Where GST is payable on a supply made under this Lease, the recipient shall pay it in addition against a valid tax invoice, and where the recipient is liable to pay it under reverse charge, the recipient shall pay that tax to the Government and issue a self-invoice under Section 31(3)(f) of the CGST Act, 2017.
5.2 The Lessee shall deduct tax at source from the Rent and from every other payment under this Lease from which the Income-tax Act, 1961 requires deduction, at the rate and threshold in force on the date of payment, and shall furnish the Lessor the certificate of deduction the law requires.
- 6. STRUCTURAL SAFETY
6.1 Before installing the Tower, the Lessee shall, at its own cost, obtain a structural stability certificate from a structural engineer holding a valid licence or registration, confirming that the Site can safely bear the Tower and its equipment as specified in Clause 1.2, and shall give the Lessor a copy of it before installation begins.
6.2 The Lessee shall not increase the load at the Site beyond what the certificate current under this Clause 6 certifies, without a fresh certificate covering the increased load and the Lessor's prior written consent.
6.3 The Lessee shall obtain a fresh structural stability certificate at least once every three years during the Term, and sooner if the Lessor reasonably requires after a visible sign of structural distress at the Site, and shall give the Lessor a copy of each.
6.4 The Lessee shall carry out installation, maintenance and removal work in a manner that does not compromise the roof's waterproofing or the building's structure, and shall make good, at its own cost and promptly on discovery, any damage that work causes to either.
- 7. ELECTRICITY
- 8. POWER BACK-UP
- 9. RADIATION SELF-CERTIFICATION AND TELECOM COMPLIANCE
9.1 The Lessee shall ensure that electromagnetic-field radiation from the Tower and its antennas remains within the limits the Department of Telecommunications prescribes from time to time, shall self-certify that compliance in the manner the Department requires, and shall give the Lessor a copy of the self-certification filed on the Department's Tarang Sanchar portal (tarangsanchar.gov.in), or its successor, before the Tower is commissioned and again after every material change to the antennas.
9.2 The Lessee shall obtain, pay for and keep current, at its own cost, every other licence, permission, no-objection certificate and approval that applicable law requires for installing and operating the Tower at the Site — see Clause 10 on municipal permission and Clause 11 on aviation clearance — and shall give the Lessor a copy of each on request.
- 10. MUNICIPAL PERMISSION
10.1 A mobile tower or antenna installation of this kind is commonly regulated by the municipal corporation, municipal council or committee, or other local body having jurisdiction over the Site — under the Punjab Municipal Corporation Act, 1976 or the Punjab Municipal Act, 1911 for a Site in the State of Punjab, and under the Punjab Municipal Corporation Law (Extension to Chandigarh) Act, 1994 for a Site in the Union Territory of Chandigarh — and commonly needs a permission, no-objection certificate or registration from that body, which may attract a fee. The permission actually required, the authority that grants it and the fee payable on it depend on the local body having jurisdiction over the Site and on the Tower's height, type and location, and this Agreement does not, and cannot, state one procedure or one figure for it.
10.2 The Lessee shall identify the local body having jurisdiction over the Site, and shall apply for, obtain, pay for and keep current, at its own cost, every permission that body requires for the Tower, before installing it, and shall give the Lessor a copy of each on request.
10.3 Where the Lessor holds the Site under an allotment or lease from a development authority, an Estate Officer or another allotting authority, or under its own society bye-laws, the conditions of that allotment, lease or bye-law may separately restrict or prohibit a tower installation. The Lessor shall tell the Lessee in writing of any such condition it is aware of before the Tower is installed, and the Lessee shall comply with a condition it has been told of in this way.
- 11. AVIATION AND HEIGHT CLEARANCE
11.1 Where the Site is within the notified distance of an aerodrome or a defence installation, the Lessee shall obtain, at its own cost, the height and colour or lighting clearance the Airports Authority of India, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation or the concerned defence authority requires before erecting a Tower above the permitted height. This Agreement does not, and cannot, state whether the Site falls within a notified distance of this kind.
- 12. CO-LOCATION
- 13. MAINTENANCE
13.1 The Lessee shall, at its own cost, keep the Tower and its equipment at the Site in good repair and in safe condition throughout the Term, and shall promptly repair or make safe anything that becomes damaged, corroded or unsafe.
13.2 If the Lessee does not do so within a reasonable time of written notice from the Lessor, and there is a real risk to safety, the Lessor may, without liability for damage caused by doing so, take reasonable steps to make the Tower or its equipment safe, and recover the reasonable documented cost from the Lessee.
- 14. ACCESS
14.1 The Lessor shall give the Lessee, and the Lessee's employees and contractors, access to the Site at all reasonable times for installation and scheduled maintenance, on reasonable prior notice, and at all times without notice for emergency repair or to address a safety risk.
14.2 The Lessee shall give the Lessor reasonable access to inspect the Site on reasonable prior written notice, save in an emergency, and subject to the Lessee's own safety protocol for live electrical and telecom equipment.
- 15. INSURANCE AND LIABILITY
15.1 The Lessee shall, at its own cost, insure the Tower and its equipment against fire, storm, lightning and other insurable risks, and shall maintain public liability insurance covering injury to person or damage to property arising from the Tower, its equipment, or their installation, operation, maintenance or collapse.
15.2 The Lessee shall maintain workmen's compensation or equivalent insurance for the personnel it or its contractors engage to install, maintain or remove the Tower.
15.3 Except to the extent caused by the Lessor's own default or negligence, the Lessee shall indemnify the Lessor against loss, damage, injury or a third-party claim arising from the Tower, its equipment, or the Lessee's activities at the Site.
- 16. LESSOR'S COVENANTS
16.1 The Lessor covenants that it is entitled to let the Site on the terms of this Lease, and that so long as the Lessee pays the Rent and observes its obligations under this Lease, the Lessee may hold and enjoy the Site during the Term without interruption from the Lessor or a person claiming through the Lessor.
- 17. ASSIGNMENT
17.1 The Lessee shall not assign, sub-let or part with possession of the Site, except to a successor that takes over the Lessee's telecom business or this Tower by way of merger, amalgamation, acquisition or scheme of arrangement, or to another entity licensed by the Department of Telecommunications to hold and operate the same Tower, with the Lessor's prior written consent, not to be unreasonably withheld.
17.2 The Lessor shall not assign its interest as Lessor without giving the assignee written notice of this Lease and procuring the assignee's written undertaking to be bound by it.
- 18. DEFAULT
18.1 The Lessor may terminate this Lease by written notice if the Lessee fails to pay Rent for two consecutive months and does not pay the arrears within fifteen days of a written demand, or if the Lessee commits a material breach of this Lease — including a breach of Clause 6 (Structural Safety) or Clause 15 (Insurance and Liability) — and does not remedy it within thirty days of written notice to do so.
18.2 The Lessee may terminate this Lease by written notice if the Lessor commits a material breach of this Lease, including a breach of Clause 16, and does not remedy it within thirty days of written notice to do so.
- 19. LOCK-IN AND TERMINATION FOR CONVENIENCE
- 20. EFFECT OF EXPIRY OR TERMINATION
20.1 On expiry or earlier termination of this Lease, the Lessee's right to remain at the Site ends, subject only to the removal period in Clause 21.
- 21. REMOVAL AND RESTORATION
21.2 If the Lessee does not do so within that period, the Lessor may remove the Tower and the Lessee's other equipment, store it at the Lessee's risk and cost, and make good the Site itself or through a contractor, and recover the reasonable documented cost from the Lessee, including from the security deposit.
21.3 This Clause 21 survives the expiry or termination of this Lease.
- 22. FORCE MAJEURE
22.1 Neither Party is liable for a failure to perform an obligation under this Lease, other than an obligation to pay money already due, to the extent that failure is caused by an event beyond that Party's reasonable control, including fire, flood, earthquake, riot, strike or a restraint of a government authority, for so long as that event continues, provided the affected Party gives the other prompt written notice of it.
- 23. STAMP DUTY
- 24. NOTICES
24.1 A notice under this Lease shall be in writing and delivered by hand against acknowledgment, or by registered post or reputed courier with proof of delivery, to the Lessor at __________ and to the Lessee at __________, or to such other address as a Party notifies in writing.
- 25. GOVERNING LAW AND DISPUTE RESOLUTION
25.1 This Lease is governed by the laws of India as in force at the place where the Site is situated.
- 26. GENERAL
26.1 This Lease is the entire agreement between the Parties about the Site and supersedes every prior discussion about it.
26.2 No amendment to this Lease is effective unless made in writing and signed by both Parties.
26.3 A failure or delay by a Party in enforcing this Lease is not a waiver of it.
26.4 If a provision of this Lease is held invalid or unenforceable, the rest of it continues in effect.
26.5 Nothing in this Lease creates a partnership, joint venture or agency between the Parties, or makes either Party the agent of the other.
FOR THE LESSOR
__________
Signature: ______________________________
Date: ______________________________
FOR THE LESSEE
__________
Signature: ______________________________
Date: ______________________________
WITNESSES