Anil Kumar Lahoti, Chairman, TRAI
India’s digital transformation vision aims to leverage technology to drive economic growth, improve governance and enhance citizens’ quality of life. A conducive regulatory environment is key to fulfilling this vision. In 2024, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) focused on providing an enabling 5G ecosystem, improving the quality of services and combating spam calls and SMSs. Anil Kumar Lahoti, Chairman, TRAI, discussed these key themes and the regulator’s role at various recent industry events. Edited excerpts from some of his addresses…
Enabling 5G
TRAI has been at the forefront of facilitating and enabling 5G innovation and its roll-out in India. In April 2022, TRAI released its recommendations on the auction of spectrum in frequency bands identified for the International Mobile Telecommunications-2020 standard. These recommendations encompassed conditions for spectrum auctions in various bands, spectrum requirements for private 5G networks, and the development and proliferation of 5G use cases. Based on these recommendations, the Department of Telecommunications conducted spectrum auctions in July-August 2022. The auction was a success, with about 71 per cent of the spectrum sold for Rs 1.55 trillion. The service roll-out happened very fast, and 5G services were commercially launched in October 2022 – probably the fastest in the world. The average 5G data usage per subscriber per month now exceeds 20 GB. Subscriptions are estimated to reach 840 million by the end of 2029, accounting for around 65 per cent of total mobile subscriptions. Enhanced mobile broadband and fixed wireless access are already emerging as initial use cases.
One of the key strategies that TRAI has championed is the efficient utilisation of street furniture and aerial fibre to resolve right-of-way issues in the deployment of 5G. In this context, TRAI has conducted pilot studies at an airport, a port, a smart city and a metro station/train, under actual field conditions, to understand real administrative and technological challenges in sharing street furniture. These pilots demonstrated the potential of existing urban infrastructure to accommodate the revolutionary technology.
To identify, develop and proliferate telecom-driven use cases across different sectors, TRAI recommended the creation of a 5G-dedicated inter ministerial working group. It also recommended the establishment of special dedicated digital cells in each department and ministry to formulate the use of digital technologies, as well as the development of relevant and affordable use cases. This will enable the development of innovative use cases and their proliferation in areas such as smart cities, smart industries, connected vehicles, advanced and connected healthcare, and smart education.
TRAI released a consultation paper on “Digital Transformation through 5G Ecosystem” in September 2023. The objective was to identify policy challenges and suggest an appropriate policy framework for faster adoption and effective utilisation of new technologies for the holistic and sustainable development of the economy.
Later, in April 2024, TRAI made recommendations to the government on encouraging innovative technologies, services, use cases and business models through a regulatory sandbox in the digital communications sector. It provided a framework that enables various digital communication sector entities to work together in a structured manner. The recognition of the strategic importance of terahertz spectrum for various innovative applications has also been taken note of by TRAI. The regulator has given its recommendations that address the unique challenges and opportunities associated with the deployment of terahertz frequency bands. This would enable innovators to evaluate the performance of products in the terahertz band at the conception, development and design stages, helping ascertain the technical viability of technologies and services built on these bands. Upon implementation, the new experimental authorisation regime will provide a boost to the government’s Make in India initiative.
RedCap technology is another opportunity that can help address a broad range of mid-tier applications more effectively. It will enable the adoption of devices in a cost- and energy-efficient manner, driving operational efficiencies with optimised cost structures and accelerating Industry 4.0 transformation in industrial applications such as video monitoring and inventory management.
Measures for combating spam calls and SMSs
TRAI has taken several measures to combat the persistent issue of spam calls and SMSs. As a result, complaints against spam calls have shown a downward trend. TRAI had issued directions in August 2024, mandating that any entity found making promotional voice calls in violation of regulations would face strict consequences, including the disconnection of all telecom resources, blacklisting for up to two years, and a ban on new resource allocation during the blacklist period. Following this direction, access providers took widespread actions that led to a significant reduction in the number of complaints registered against spam calls. Registered complaints against unregistered senders, as reported by access providers, reduced by 20 per cent from 189,000 in August 2024 to 151,000 in October 2024.
In another major step towards creating a safer and spam-free messaging ecosystem, TRAI has successfully implemented a framework to ensure the traceability of all commercial SMSs. Under this framework, all principal entities (PEs) such as businesses, banks and government agencies, along with their telemarketers, were required to declare and register their message transmission paths through blockchain-based distributed ledger technology (DLT). This chain declaration and binding process ensures the end-to-end traceability of every message, from its origin to its delivery, without compromising data security or delays in SMS delivery. To operationalise this, TRAI issued a directive in August 2024 mandating the traceability of all commercial messages. The compliance deadline was extended until December 10, 2024, to enable the smooth onboarding of approximately 113,000 active PEs. TRAI adopted a collaborative approach by engaging with key sectoral regulators such as the Reserve Bank of India, the Securities and Exchange Board of India, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority and the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority; government agencies such as the National Informatics Centre and the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing; and state governments to promote awareness and accelerate declaration and binding efforts. Access providers also played a crucial role in supporting PEs and telemarketers through targeted outreach campaigns and technical guidance for seamless integration into the DLT system.
To minimise disruptions, TRAI introduced an innovative implementation strategy during the initial enforcement period. While the chain binding regulations were technically enforced, messages sent through undeclared paths were temporarily allowed but flagged with error codes. These error codes were shared with the concerned PEs to enable corrective actions without disrupting critical messages like OTPs or other time-sensitive communications. As a result of these coordinated efforts, all major PEs have now registered their message transmission chains with access providers. Effective December 11, 2024, SMS traffic sent through unregistered paths is being rejected, marking the culmination of this massive exercise.
Enabling satcom
With the advancement in satellite communication (satcom) technologies, it has now become possible to provide high speed broadband directly to consumers. Satcom is critical for providing reliable and ubiquitous telecom connectivity to remote and uncovered areas of the country. Satellite systems also play a vital role in managing connectivity with vehicles, vessels at sea, aircraft and internet of things devices in remote and far-flung areas. Satcom plays a crucial role during disasters when the terrestrial network is damaged. The sector has, of late, seen massive innovations, such as high throughput satellites and software-defined satellites. These developments are set to usher in a paradigm shift in addressing broadband and broadcast needs.
TRAI has issued various recommendations to enable growth and reforms in the satcom domain. In its recommendations on the provision of cellular backhaul connectivity via satellite through very small aperture terminals (VSATs), issued in July 2020, TRAI recommended allowing VSAT operators to provide backhaul connectivity for cellular mobile services and Wi-Fi hotspots. In August 2021, it recommended the removal of restrictions on the data rate of VSAT terminals in its recommendations on the licensing framework for satellite-based connectivity for low bit rate applications. In its recommendations on ease of doing business in the telecom and broadcasting sector, issued in May 2023, TRAI recommended that the Department of Space (DoS) publish a list of approved foreign satellites or satellite systems. TRAI also recommended allowing service licensees to hire foreign satellite capacities for a longer period. These recommendations have helped usher in various reforms in the satcom space and enhanced the scope of satellite licences. Further, the Indian Space Policy, 2023, issued by the DoS, has paved the way for greater participation of non-government entities in carrying out end-to-end activities in the space domain, with the aim of providing them a level playing field. India is also making significant strides in the development of dedicated space parks to bolster its space industry. The satcom sector is flourishing and has the potential to propel the country to new heights.
Quality of service
Services and networks have undergone significant changes in recent years – from 2G to 4G and now 5G. Today, data accounts for the majority of the network traffic. Further, there has been a convergence of wireline and wireless services. Although the regulations governing the quality of service have been updated periodically, in October 2024, TRAI notified a comprehensive state-of-the-art regulation after taking into account international standards as well as a detailed analysis of the technical performance of all service providers within the country.
TRAI has introduced stringent provisions for financial disincentives in the event of non-compliance by service providers. It has also given a glide path to service providers to ensure a smooth transition and upgrade of their networks. The new parameters are stringent, and service providers will need to upgrade their systems and make the necessary investments.
