The parliament was informed that the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) is currently not considering the proposal to raise the revenue sharing rate payable by telecom operators. To this end, Devusinh Chauhan, Minister of State for Communications, informed that the current revenue sharing rate payable by telecom operators is 8 per cent of the adjusted gross revenue (AGR), inclusive of the Universal Service Obligation (USO) levy, which is presently 5 per cent of AGR.
Under the unified licence regime introduced in August 2013, there is a uniform license fee on AGR across all telecom licenses. Presently an applicant can apply for a unified licence along with authorisation for offerings, including unified license (all services), access service (service area wise), internet service (categories A, B and C), national long-distance services, international long distance service, global mobile personal communication by satellite service, among others.
Meanwhile, the new entrants in the telecom sector are applying for licenses to provide telecommunications services on regular basis. According to the minister, as of now, 755 licences have been granted to new entrants between January 1, 2021, and March 31, 2022.
