Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on December 18 tabled the Telecommunications Bill, 2023, in Lok Sabha amid sloganeering by opposition in the House. The Bill allows the government to temporarily take control of telecom services in the interest of national security, drops OTT in the definition of telecom services and provides for a non-auction route for the allocation of satellite spectrum.
The Bill was introduced to replace the Indian Telegraph Act, which has governed the telecommunications sector for over 138 years.
The final version of the Bill is likely to eliminate the regulation of over-the-top (OTT) communication apps from its ambit. Currently, OTTs reportedly come under the ambit of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) and to avoid any conflict the same has been removed from the Bill.
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The Bill has also kept the definition of telecommunication services open-ended. Under the final version, “telecommunication service” means any service for telecommunication.
Some of the key changes proposed are:
- Curbing the powers of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) by addressing concerns raised by industry players.
- Easing certain rules, such as refund of fees for licenses and registrations in case a company surrenders its permit.
- The government can suspend or prohibit the use of telecom equipment from countries or a person as may be notified in case of national security. -Telecom equipment needs to be procured from trusted sources only.
- Proposes that prior consent should be taken for receiving certain messages such as promotional, advertising, etc.
- The bill is likely to replace the Indian Telegraph Act, 1885, the Indian Wireless Telegraphy Act, 1933, and the Telegraph Wires (Unlawful Possession) Act, 1950.
- Will also include significant changes in the allocation of spectrum for satellite broadband service.
- Unauthorised entry into telecom networks, which includes hacking or illegally obtaining data, can result in up to three years of imprisonment and a fine of up to Rs 2 crore. A similar prison sentence, but with a Rs 50 lakh fine will be imposed on those who fraudulently acquire subscriber identity modules.
- The bill proposes renaming the universal services obligation fund to Digital Bharat Nidhi.
According to the bill, the press messages meant for publication in India of correspondents accredited to the Centre or state governments shall not be intercepted or detained unless their transmission has been prohibited under rules applicable to public emergency, public order etc.
The Telecommunications Bill 2023 was approved by the Union Cabinet in August 2023. Following this, the President of India was informed about the bill, paving the way for its introduction in the Lok Sabha.
The Bill was first released last year. In the 2022 version, it proposed to include services like WhatsApp, Signal and Telegram in the definition of telecommunication services.
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