The policy and regulatory framework governing telecommunications in India comprises various statutes, guidelines, rules, etc. Listed below are the primary statutes regulating the telecommunications sector in India:

1. Indian Telegraph Act, 1885
2. The Indian Wireless Telegraphy Act, 1933
3. Telecom Regulatory Authority of India(TRAI) Act, 1997
4. National Broadband Policy, 2004
5. National Digital Communications Policy, 2018

The Indian Telegraph Act, 1885 is the primary legislation underlying the regulatory framework for telecom in India. It prescribes various powers of the government to operate and regulate telecommunication services in India.¹⁾ The main objective of the Telegraph Act, when enacted in 1885, was to give power to the Government to install telegraph lines on private as well as public property.²⁾ Since then, this act has undergone multiple amendments to accommodate new technologies in communication. This act gives the Central Government the exclusive privilege in respect of telegraphs and power to grant licenses.³⁾ At present, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) under the Ministry of Communications grants licenses and approvals to telecom service providers (TSPs) in India.

The main objective of The Indian Wireless Telegraphy Act,1933 is to regulate the possession of wireless telegraphy apparatus. This Act explicitly prohibits the possession of wireless telegraphy apparatus, unless a license has been given in that regard by the telegraph authority constituted under the telegraph act. DoT issues the license to possess wireless telegraphy apparatus.

With the liberalization of the telecom sector and entry of private players in the 90s, the need for independent regulation became inevitable. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) was, thus, established with effect from 20th February 1997 by an Act of Parliament, called the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India Act, 1997, to regulate telecom services, including fixation/revision of tariffs for telecom services which were earlier vested in the Central Government.⁴⁾ The TRAI Act also provides for a Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) to adjudicate any dispute between licensors (i.e. DoT) and licensee, between two service providers, and between service providers and a group of consumers.

Apart from the grant of licenses, the DoT is also responsible for formulation of developmental policies for the accelerated growth of the telecommunication services. Thus, recognizing the importance of the telecommunication services in socio-economic development, the government has been coming up with telecommunications policy at a regular interval. Listed below are the policies which have been brought by the government (in chronological order):

1. National Telecommunications Policy, 1994
2. New Telecom Policy, 1999
3. National Telecom Policy, 2012
4. National Digital Communications Policy, 2018

Apart from the Telecommunication Policy, the government has also brought Broadband Policy ( Broadband Policy, 2004 ) specifically for proliferation and growth of broadband in India.

The most recent telecom policy is National Digital Communications Policy, 2018. Unveiled by the Government in 2018, the Policy attempts to outline a set of goals, initiatives, strategies and intended policy outcomes. The Policy aims to accomplish the following Strategic Objectives by 2022:⁵⁾

• Provisioning of Broadband for All
• Creating 4 Million additional jobs in the Digital Communications sector
• Enhancing the contribution of the Digital Communications sector to 8% of India’s GDP from 6% in 2017
• Propelling India to the Top 50 Nations in the ICT Development Index of ITU from 134 in 201
• Enhancing India’s contribution to Global Value Chains
• Ensuring Digital Sovereignty

It is also important to re-look at these statutes with regard to explicit provisions related to connectivity in rural and remote areas, community networks, etc.

To begin with, the mission of DoT as listed on its website has a special emphasis to connectivity in rural areas: “To develop a robust and secure state-of-the-art telecommunication network providing seamless coverage with special focus on rural and remote areas for bridging the digital divide and thereby facilitate socio- economic development”⁶⁾

The NDCP 2018 mentions specific initiatives for broadband connectivity in rural areas. Although the term “Community Networks” does not explicitly appear in the NDCP document, the term “Public Wi-Fi” has been mentioned. One of the goals of the “Connect India” Mission is to “enable deployment of public Wi-Fi Hotspots; to reach 5 million by 2020 and 10 million by 2022”.⁷⁾ NDCP mentions the promotion of Open Public Wi-Fi Access through W-Fi/ Public Data Office Aggregators and Public Data Offices as a strategy to catalyze investments in the Digital Communications Sector.⁸⁾ This has been operationalized through the Prime Minister Wi-Fi Access Network Interface (PM-WANI) initiative of DoT, launched in 2020.

NDCP 2018 also strives to ensure inclusion of uncovered areas and digitally deprived segments of society by channelizing the Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF) and by reviewing the scope and modalities of USOF.⁹⁾ With regard to rights of indigenous people over the use of natural resources such as spectrum, the NDCP 2018 doesn’t mention this explicitly; though it recognizes spectrum as a key natural resource for public benefit.¹⁰⁾

In the mission “Connect India”, NDCP provides for the establishment of the National Broadband Mission (NBM) as a strategy. In the NBM various initiatives have been suggested to increase connectivity in rural and remote areas. Under the Bharat Net initiative (a flagship project of the Government of India which aims to connect 2.5 lakh gram panchayats across India with Optical Fiber Cables), NDCP targets provision of 1 Gbps (upgradeable to 10 Gbps) to every gram panchayat. The GramNet initiative aims to connect all rural development institutions with 10 Mbps (upgradeable to 100 Mbps). To increase last-mile connectivity, Jan Wi-Fi initiative aims to establish 2 Million Wi-Fi Hotspots.

Apart from these large programs, some smaller initiatives have also been taken by the Government to improve connectivity in remote areas. For example, the Department of Telecom executed a project for providing Mobile Services in 2199 locations in Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, which are affected by Left Wing Extremism (LWE). The Comprehensive Telecom Development Program for the North East region aimed to connect 8261 villages through installation of 6000 mobile tower sites.¹¹⁾

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