National Telecom Policy (NTP) 2011-Sending the wrong signals T. H. CHOWDARY

The draft of a new National Telecom Policy (NTP) 2011 was recently released by the Communications Minister, Mr Kapil Sibal. The policy that mobile subscribers should not be charged a roaming fee but that it should be free is meant to highlight the oneness of India. A person is to have the same number, whether he is in his home State or any other State; national number portability has been set as a grand aim.

That the issue of spectrum will be delinked from telecom licences and sold transparently through an e-auction is, however, a questionable move. According to the draft policy, conditions for companies to exit from service provision will be eased, making mergers and acquisitions easier. All these are laudable ideas but they have serious implications.

TARIFFS AND FREE ROAMING

When there is unfettered market competition, with nearly a dozen mobile telephony operators in every State, why should the government offer a zero price for inter-State roaming? When the mobile service was first launched in 1995, the Department of Telecom (DoT) fixed Rs 16 per minute to be paid by the caller. The called person also had to pay. This was a prohibitive price. No wonder growth was at a snail’s pace. People preferred radio paging, where the called person knew he had to call a particular number and often used the nearest phone booth to return the call.

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