DoT to ask Cabinet to okay new telecom policy by April

The draft of the much-awaited policy will be ready in the next 2-3 weeks for incorporating stakeholder response and the Telecom Department expects to seek Cabinet nod on the proposed policy sometime in April, Telecom Secretary Aruna Sundararajan said on the sidelines of a FICCI-EY event.

"The consultations on the new telecom policy (NTP) is nearly over and...in the next 2-3 weeks, we will be in a position to table the draft document and then people will be able to respond to that," Sundararajan said.

She said on futuristic technologies like machine-to- machine (M2M) communication, India is looking to play a far bigger role than just being a user.

"We also want to be the technology supplier and manufacturer, be it low-cost sensors or software platform for M2M communication," she said.

Terming M2M as being a fast-evolving area, the Telecom Secretary said that taking a licence heavy approach for it may not be appropriate as it may restrain the growth of the new age technology.

"Also, key will be to ensure that interoperability is maintained. Similarly, on service quality and spectrum, we should not be prescriptive...rather we should let things evolve," she noted.

She said that the 5G roadmap would require commitment of significant resources from the government as well as the industry.

"Unless we commit resources, both in terms of manpower and capital investments, India cannot emerge a leader," she said.

Sundararajan -- who also chairs a committee on evolving common utility duct policy for government departments -- said the panel will submit its report by March end.