[India] TRAI for lower rates, faster growth of net

["Irfan Khan" <khania2@super.net.pk>]

TRAI for lower rates, faster growth of net
New Delhi, 
September 11, 2002
 


In one of its first proactive actions, the Telecom Regulatory 
Authority of India (TRAI) on Monday detailed a set of recommendations 
to boost the growth of Internet in the country. These include setting 
up of a domestic Internet Exchange and reducing the charges for 
Internet leased lines as well as for dial-up Internet Access. 

The recommendations result from deliberations by a multi-disciplinary 
task force set up by TRAI to see how Internet growth could be 
accelerated. Net penetration in terms of number of subscribers, is 
less than 1 percent (0.34 percent). 

The TRAI has recommended that a "National Internet Exchange of India" 
or NIXI should be set up to ensure that intra-India traffic is not 
carried overseas and then routed back to the country. "NIXI will 
result in better Internet infrastructure in the country and saving of 
foreign exchange on international bandwidth," the TRAI said in its 
recommendations. 
As part of NIXI, four Internet Exchange Points (IXPs) are proposed to 
be set up initially, in the four metro cities. 

The TRAI has also asked the government to ensure availability of 
cheaper Internet access devices like low-cost indigenous personal 
computers (PCs). At another end, it said steps should be taken for 
usage of alternative access technologies like cable television and 
wireless local area networks (WLANs) as well as "simultaneous 
provision of Internet access along with voice in the local loop." 

The TRAI also recommended sops for the bleeding Internet service 
providers (ISPs). 

To bring down their capital and operational costs, it has recommended 
that ISP services should be brought under the infrastructure category 
status, at par with telecom. It also asked the government to 
"facilitate" direct access to the international submarine cable 
system by the ISPs. On the policy front, the TRAI has favoured the 
delicensing of 2.4 Giga Hertz (GHz) band for low power outdoor usage 
for (wireless) last mile Internet access. 

The government is not bound by the recommendations of the TRAI, 
though in most recent cases, it has chosen to abide by them. 

Welcoming the recommendations, ISP Association of India secretary 
Amitabh Singhal said: "Reduction in dial-up access charges and leased 
line rates would lead to a spurt in the growth of the Internet 
users." Currently, a user pays Rs. 24 per hour as telephone charges 
which is in addition to the charge of about Rs. 10 per hour paid to 
the ISP.

 
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