Govt to unveil National Telecom Policy in Jan

The much-awaited National Telecom Policy-2011 will be unveiled in January next year, the Telecom Minister, Mr Kapil Sibal, has said.

The policy was earlier expected to be unveiled by December this year, but delays in receiving recommendations have pushed the date to next year.

“The (draft) policy I have already announced as I had committed. Industry wants some more time to respond, we will give them time. Finalisation of the policy will happen in January instead of December,” Mr Sibal said here at an event today.

He added that TRAI’s recommendations on the National Telecom Policy have just come in and the Department of Telecom is looking into the same.

“TRAI’s recommendations have just come, we will consider them, call Telecom Commission (meet)... move to Cabinet,” he said.

The Minister said the media is confusing between TRAI’s recommendations and the Telecom Policy.

“People must understand the difference between policy and TRAI’s recommendations. TRAI’s recommendations deal with the nitty-gritty of mergers and acquisitions and all the other specific issues which never go into policy,” he said.

The draft of the National Telecom Policy 2011 was announced by Mr Sibal in early October with a major thrust on transparency, an improved investment climate and promotion of consumer interest.

Under the draft plan, the Telecom Ministry is also looking to facilitate nation-wide free roaming, frame an exit policy for operators to surrender licences, give a push to indigenous manufacturing and promote an eco-system for the development of a self-dependent telecom industry.

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