Various ministries within the government have expressed their concerns on the proposed national telecom policy (NTP), say news reports.
It is believed that the Ministry of Commerce, the Department of Financial Services and the Department of Space have, in particular, opposed various proposals within the NTP.
For instance, the Ministry of Commerce has raised concerns over the proposal within the NTP to permit preferential access to locally manufactured telecom products. So, in its response to the draft policy, the ministry has observed that the World Trade Organisation (WTO) agreements on subsidies and countervailing measures prohibits WTO members from granting incentives conditioned on the use of domestic over imported goods. It is of the view that any requirement of indigenisation through value addition in the NTP 2012 would violate the prohibition of quantitative regulations on procurement from domestic sources under the General Agreement on Tariff and Trade.
Meanwhile, it has suggested that the proposed migration to a unified licence regime, as recommended by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), should be done after obtaining inputs from the concerned authorities.
Similarly, the Department of Financial Services has opposed bringing the telecom sector under the gamut of infrastructure financing schemes. The NTP envisages providing telecom an infrastructure status thus making the sector eligible for financing from organisations such as the India Infrastructure Finance Company Limited. The Department of Financial Services argues that such proposals can be finalised only after the approval of an empowered committee and the Finance Minister.
Also, the Department of Space is asking for spectrum earmarked for satellite broadband services to be included in the NTP.
In light of this, therefore, the Department of Communications and IT has deferred its plan to place NTP before the cabinet for approval.
