DoT sets deadline for private service providers

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI, APRIL 20. Concerned at the non-fulfillment of ``social obligations'' by private basic telephone service providers, the Department of Telecom (DoT) has given these companies 180 days to come out with their plans of providing public telephones in villages.

The Secretary of DoT, Mr. Shyamal Ghosh, told presspersons during a meeting with the members of FICCI here today that the Government had asked private service providers to come out with their plans for installing village telephones. The Government was committed to connect all villages by 2002 but ``we are not going to force upon the licencees their universal service obligations. If they have any innovative suggestions, we would like to have them. There could even be a joint venture between DoT Services and private operators for meeting the obligations.'' Mr. Ghosh also said the private basic service providers should come out with the plans for funding the Universal Service Obligation fund. They would have to consider whether to mobilise funds through tax free bonds, World Bank loans, involvement of cooperatives (especially farmers' cooperatives), contributions from the basic licencees or through a bidding system. Experiences of other countries in this matter should be studied.

The setting up of a rural telecom corporation under the purview of the Government for appropriating the Universal Service Obligation fund would not be an adequate arrangement.

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Section  : National
Previous : '40 p.c. of malnourished children are in India'
Next     : Rao sees retaliation in JMM case