The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) is considering issuing notices to various operators, including Bharti Airtel, Vodafone India and Idea Cellular asking them to stop 3G roaming pacts, say news reports.
Prior to this, DoT had asked the Ministry of Law on whether it was within its jurisdiction to terminate or impose a fine on the operators offering 3G roaming services to customers without the required licence. In response, the Ministry of Law said that it could terminate such roaming pacts, as they were illegal.
In December 2011, the government had directed operators to terminate all 3G roaming pacts. However, the operators had challenged this directive before the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT).
Thereafter, in July, 2012, TDSAT delivered a split verdict on the issue. Following this, DoT approached the Ministry of Law for its opinion on the matter.
