World Dialogue on Regulation

According to a report by The Times of India, TRAI, the telecom regulator, ruled that a new telecom policy is not required, but noted that some issues affecting sector growth were being assessed.

Pradeep Baijal, TRAI chairman, said the existing telecom policy (NTP 1999) provided for Internet telephony, broadband and wireless technologies, so all that is required is to make minor adjustments to certain areas of the policy. Others disagree and believe there is a requirement for new policies, a position that echoes statements from the communications ministry.

"There are a host of issues from spectrum to network interconnectivity between Internet telephony and landline/mobile operators that need to be spelt out in detail…I think, we need a comprehensive telecom policy now that goes beyond what we already have," one official said.

It is believed telecom firms that offer only cellular services feel that the regulations are biased in favour of integrated players like Bharti, Reliance and BSNL. Spectrum allocation continues to be particularly contentious as CDMA and GSM operators attempt to secure new bandwidth they both require to push mobile broadband services.

Intelecon Research & Consultancy Ltd. 20/10/2004