The new Telecommunication Bill 2023 was passed in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday, 20 December. Now this bill has been sent to Rajya Sabha for final review. In this bill, there is a provision of 3 years in jail and a fine of up to Rs 50 lakh for purchasing a fake SIM.
The bill asks telecom companies to make mandatory biometric identification before issuing SIM cards to consumers.
This bill will allow the government to take over, manage or suspend any telecom service or network for national security reasons. That is, if needed in a war-like situation, the government will be able to intercept messages on the telecom network.
The bill will replace the 138-year-old Indian Telegraph Act that regulates the telecom sector. Apart from this, this bill will also replace The Indian Wireless Telegraph Act 1933 and Telegraph Wires Act 1950. It will also amend the TRAI Act 1997.
There will be changes in the licensing system
The bill will also bring changes to the licensing system. Currently, service providers have to obtain different licenses, permissions, approvals and registrations for different types of services. There are more than 100 licenses or registrations that the Department of Telecom issues.
• There is a provision of 3 years imprisonment and fine up to Rs 50 lakh for fraudulently obtaining a SIM.
• Instead of more than 100 licenses, now only one simple authorization will have to be taken.
• There was nothing in the Act of 1885. Spectrum has been reformed in this bill.
• Digital by Design 4 Tier Framework has been created for grievance redressal.
• A legal framework has been created to protect the telecom network in war-like situations.
• Provision for interception was made in the bill. This system has been in place in the country since the PUCL Judgment of 1996.
• Arrangement to develop new technology and new products from Digital India Fund.
• A regulatory sandbox has been created for innovation and technology development.
• That is, if someone wants to do innovation by using spectrum or telecom within a limited scope, then it will be possible.
Companies like Elon Musk’s Starlink will benefit
The bill has a provision for administrative allocation of telecom spectrum, which will speed up the launch of services. The new bill will benefit foreign companies like American businessman Elon Musk’s Starlink. At the same time, Jio may suffer loss due to this.
Customer’s consent must be obtained before sending promotional messages.
It has also been made mandatory that consumers’ consent will have to be obtained before sending advertisements and promotional messages for goods and services. It also states that the company providing telecom services will have to create an online mechanism, so that users can lodge their complaints online.
Over-the-top services excluded from new version of bill
In this bill, over-the-top services like e-commerce, online messaging have been excluded from the definition of telecom services. Last year, when the draft of the Telecommunication Bill was presented, OTT services were also included in it. Internet companies and civil society had created a huge uproar regarding this. After this, OTT has been excluded from this bill.
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