The government is preparing to introduce the new telecom bill<\/a> in the monsoon session of Parliament<\/a> later this year, with a revised draft ready after inter-ministerial and public consultation, said a senior official.
The Department of Telecommunications<\/a> (DoT) has sorted out issues around possible dilution of the Telecom Regulatory Authority<\/a> of India's powers and potential domain overlap with the broadcasting ministry. The draft will also propose light-touch regulation for over-the-top (OTT) communication apps such as WhatsApp and Signal<\/a> from the prism of national security and consumer safety and not from a revenue generation standpoint.
\"We have proposed a light-tough regulatory approach for communication apps, the details of which will be shared in the bill. We are on track to table the bill in the monsoon session,\" the official told ET on condition of anonymity. The monsoon session of Parliament is generally held in the July-August period.
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Seeks to replace three laws<\/strong>
The new telecom bill - when it is passed by Parliament - seeks to replace three laws: the Indian Telegraph Act<\/a>, 1885, the Indian Wireless Telegraphy Act, 1933 and the Telegraph Wires (Unlawful Possession) Act, 1950.
While the revised draft is expected to be out soon, it is not yet certain whether the DoT will open it up for another round of public consultations. \"It will be decided later. The revised draft has anyway been prepared after listening to all the stakeholders and whatever concerns have been raised, are already addressed,\" said the official.
The official further said that while OTT communications apps would be regulated, it would not be on the lines of telecom operators wherein they have to pay licence fee and other charges. \"OTT apps don't buy spectrum from us. The regulation of OTT is to do with regards to national security and consumer safety,\" said the official.
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