The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India
(TRAI) has today issued a Consultation Paper on “Implementation Model for
BharatNet”
Digital India was conceived by weaving various
strands of communication and information technology for digital empowerment of
citizens and delivering better governance. Establishment of broadband highways
forms the first pillar of Digital India. Therefore, timely commissioning of a
reorganized version of National Optical Fibre Network (NOFN) is very
imperative. The implementation of NOFN was not moving as per plans, TRAI had
given certain recommendations on ‘Delivering Broadband Quickly: What do we need
to do?’ dated 17th April, 2015. In addition, DoT had appointed an expert
Committee which submitted its detailed report recommending rechristening of the
project as BharatNet with three implementation models.
Some views regarding the implementation have
been raised and therefore the Authority looked into one more possible alternate
model –“Build-Own-Operate-Transfer” (BOOT) model. The Authority has come out
with this Consultation Paper (CP) to discuss issues related to strategies to
find best model of implementation for BharatNet.
The CP raises the following main
implementation and policy issues:
·
The “Report of the
Committee on NOFN” has recommended three models and risks/advantages associated
with these models. What are the other challenges with these models?
·
Whether these three models
along with implementation strategy as indicated in the report would be able to
deliver the project within the costs and time-line as envisaged in the
report?
·
Whether alternate
implementation strategy of BOOT model will be more suitable (such as cost,
execution and quality of construction) for completing the project in
time?
·
What are the advantages
and challenges associated with the BOOT model?
·
What should be the
eligibility criteria for the executing agency so that conflict of interest can
be avoided?
·
What measures are required
to be taken to avoid monopolistic behaviour of executing agency?
·
What terms and conditions
should be imposed on the executing agency so that it provides bandwidth/fibre
in fair, transparent and non-discriminatory manner?
·
What should be the
methodology of funding the project? In case of VGF, what should be the
maximum value of VGF for each State/ service area and what should be the terms
and conditions for making payments?
·
What measures should be
put in place in case the executing agency earns windfall profits?
·
Whether there is a need to
mandate the number of fibres to be offered as a dark fibre to other operators
to ensure more than one operator is available for providing bandwidth at GP
level?
·
What measures are required
so that broadband services remain affordable to the public at large?
·
The success of BOOT Model
depends on participation of private entities which will encourage competition.
What measures should be adopted to ensure large scale participation by them?
Copy of the
full text of the CP is available on TRAI website:www.trai.gov.in. The written comments on the issues raised in the
consultation paper are invited from the stakeholders by 07thDecember
2015. For any clarification/information Shri Arvind Kumar, Advisor (NSL), TRAI
may be contacted at Tel. No. +91-11-23220209 Fax No. +91-11—23230056.
NNKMD