‘Extortion, not connectivity': Telecom body COAI accuses Mumbai metro of blocking fair access to mobile network
The Cellular Operators Association of India (
COAI
) has launched a sharp attack on
Mumbai Metro
, accusing the public transport body of creating a 'monopolistic and extortionate' environment for mobile network access within metro premises. The COAI alleges that instead of allowing
telecom operators
to install
In-Building Solutions
(IBS) directly, at their own cost, the Metro has handed over exclusive rights to a third-party vendor, demanding exorbitant charges in return.
The move, COAI claims, flies in the face of the new
Telecommunications Act
and Right of Way (RoW) rules, which prohibit public authorities from denying telecom infrastructure access in public spaces.
'Telecom Service Providers are always willing to provide connectivity through IBS. However, Mumbai Metro has created a monopoly… and is now trying to extract monopolistic and extortionate rents,' said COAI director general S P Kochhar.
Kochhar compared the situation with Delhi's Pragati Maidan tunnel and Central Vista, where telcos have set up infrastructure free of cost and without bureaucratic obstruction.
'Deploying networks in high-footfall public infrastructure is standard practice, and doesn't cost the public authority anything,' he said.
In a bid to avoid service disruption for lakhs of daily commuters, telecom firms, including Jio, Airtel, and Vodafone Idea, jointly offered to provide connectivity free of cost during the trial phase, pending a formal agreement. That April 7 proposal, COAI said, was ignored by Mumbai Metro.
COAI also rejected the Metro's claim of following precedent, saying, 'Wrong precedent does not make a legitimate one. The industry is addressing such monopolies with a view to stop these extortionate practices.'
With commuter connectivity hanging in the balance, the COAI's message is clear: allow fair access, or risk denying Mumbai its rightful digital infrastructure.
Stay informed with the latest
business
news, updates on
bank holidays
and
public holidays
.
AI Masterclass for Students. Upskill Young Ones Today!– Join Now
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
3 hours ago
- Time of India
No question of review of satcom spectrum recommendation based COAI's reax: TRAI sources
New Delhi, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India ( TRAI ) on Wednesday categorically ruled out any review of recommendations on satcom spectrum at this stage, based on industry body COAI 's claims. Sources in TRAI told PTI that the regulator has already given its recommendations to the government "after following the due consultation process exhaustively and transparently". All stakeholders were given adequate opportunity to represent their viewpoint during the consultation process, they said. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like War Thunder - Register now for free and play against over 75 Million real Players War Thunder Play Now Undo There is no question of review of the recommendations at this stage based on reactions of the Cellular Operators' Association of India (COAI), TRAI sources said. The comments assume significance as COAI - whose members include Reliance Jio and Airtel - has approached the telecom department to raise concerns over TRAI recommendations on the satcom spectrum, claiming that "incorrect assumptions" have led to unjustifiably low spectrum charges for satellite services relative to terrestrial networks . Live Events In a letter dated May 29, COAI claimed that TRAI's recommendations are based on incorrect assumptions and that their implementation will hit the sustainability of terrestrial services, which form the foundation of India's digital infrastructure. COAI has urged the Department of Telecom (DoT) to form a committee to "undertake a comprehensive review of the recommendations in their entirety, ensuring the process is guided by principles of fairness, transparency, and equity and also give an opportunity to TSPs (telcos) to share their views regarding the same". The industry body argued that the recommendations provide a regulatory advantage to commercial Non-Geostationary Orbit (NGSO) satellites against terrestrial broadband service providers and, if accepted by the DoT in their present form, will undermine competition and create a non-level playing field. COAI said that TRAI's recommendations do not appear to address the most fundamental and contentious issue -- the lack of a level-playing field between terrestrial service providers and satellite operators serving the same market. "The said recommendations are based on incorrect assumptions and implementation of these recommendations will impact the sustainability of terrestrial services that form the foundation of India's digital infrastructure," the association had said. The telecom regulator last month suggested that satellite communication companies like Starlink pay four per cent of their adjusted gross revenue (AGR) as spectrum charges to the government. Operators offering satellite-based broadband internet services in urban areas would have to shell out an additional Rs 500 per subscriber annually. No additional levy would be applicable for services in rural areas. COAI also argued that the recommendation of a spectrum charge at four per cent of AGR is without justification. "It is well known and TRAI would surely be fully aware that with the advent of next-generation NGSO broadband services -- including low Earth orbit (LEO) and medium Earth orbit (MEO) constellations -- satellite services are now capable of directly substituting and competing with terrestrial fixed and mobile broadband networks," COAI said. PTI
Time of India
4 hours ago
- Time of India
DoT mulls reviewing PPP-MII order, may relax local sourcing requirements
New Delhi: The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) plans to review its public procurement policy (PPP) with preference to Make-in-India (MII) order issued in October last year in a bid to incorporate more products and likely relax local sourcing requirements . While issuing the guidelines for the PPP Make-in-India order last year, the DoT had identified 36 products that must have over 50% local value addition to be eligible for procurement by the Central government and its affiliated entities. Since 5G products were excluded from the list, the DoT had incorporated an enabling provision to review the products from time to time. As per DoT's notice seeking stakeholders' comments, it proposes to review its PPP-MII order dated October 21, 2024, specifically for aspects concerning the list of products notified under the order, product wise local content (LC) requirement including the ceiling of LC for design, conditions of inputs (including design) to be qualified as LC and criteria for calculating LC for software products. 'Multiple reports ( NITI Aayog , Trai, MAIT, PLI companies etc.) indicate that India's limited component ecosystem poses challenges in achieving 50-60% LC in electronic/telecom products. Recognizing this constraint, the conditions for LC qualification also requires a review,' the DoT notice said. Currently, the list of products where the minimum LC has to be over 50% include routers, ethernet switches, media gateways, customer premises equipment, GPON equipment, satellite phones and terminals, optical fibre and cable and telecom batteries. While tightening the norms and pushing Make-in-India, the government had excluded imported items sourced locally from resellers and distributors from the calculation of LC. Besides, royalties, technical charges paid out of India and supply of repackaged and refurbished goods excluded from the calculation of LC. In case of public procurement, preference is given to class-1 suppliers. In case, class 1 supplier is not able to supply, class 11 supplier is given a chance. All companies making products under the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for telecom equipment, would be treated as class 11 suppliers. A class 1 supplier has to have 50% LC while a class 11 supplier needs 20% LC. 'Any recommendations for the inclusion of new products or exclusion of existing ones must be substantiated with detailed justification including verifiable data such as list of major manufacturers, estimated LC value (%), annual production capacity, domestic sales and exports/imports (with figures), sales to public sector entities etc,' the notice added. The stakeholders can send their comments within 30 days.
Time of India
5 hours ago
- Time of India
'No question of review of satcom spectrum recommendation based on COAI's reactions'
New Delhi: Telecom Regulatory Authority of India ( TRAI ) on Wednesday categorically ruled out any review of recommendations on satcom spectrum at this stage, based on industry body COAI 's claims. Sources in TRAI told PTI that the regulator has already given its recommendations to the government "after following the due consultation process exhaustively and transparently". All stakeholders were given adequate opportunity to represent their viewpoint during the consultation process, they said. There is no question of review of the recommendations at this stage based on reactions of the Cellular Operators' Association of India (COAI), TRAI sources said. The comments assume significance as COAI - whose members include Reliance Jio and Airtel - has approached the telecom department to raise concerns over TRAI recommendations on the satcom spectrum, claiming that "incorrect assumptions" have led to unjustifiably low spectrum charges for satellite services relative to terrestrial networks . In a letter dated May 29, COAI claimed that TRAI's recommendations are based on incorrect assumptions and that their implementation will hit the sustainability of terrestrial services, which form the foundation of India's digital infrastructure. COAI has urged the Department of Telecom (DoT) to form a committee to "undertake a comprehensive review of the recommendations in their entirety, ensuring the process is guided by principles of fairness, transparency, and equity and also give an opportunity to TSPs (telcos) to share their views regarding the same". The industry body argued that the recommendations provide a regulatory advantage to commercial Non-Geostationary Orbit (NGSO) satellites against terrestrial broadband service providers and, if accepted by the DoT in their present form, will undermine competition and create a non-level playing field. COAI said that TRAI's recommendations do not appear to address the most fundamental and contentious issue -- the lack of a level-playing field between terrestrial service providers and satellite operators serving the same market. "The said recommendations are based on incorrect assumptions and implementation of these recommendations will impact the sustainability of terrestrial services that form the foundation of India's digital infrastructure," the association had said. The telecom regulator last month suggested that satellite communication companies like Starlink pay four per cent of their adjusted gross revenue (AGR) as spectrum charges to the government. Operators offering satellite-based broadband internet services in urban areas would have to shell out an additional Rs 500 per subscriber annually. No additional levy would be applicable for services in rural areas. COAI also argued that the recommendation of a spectrum charge at four per cent of AGR is without justification. "It is well known and TRAI would surely be fully aware that with the advent of next-generation NGSO broadband services -- including low Earth orbit (LEO) and medium Earth orbit (MEO) constellations -- satellite services are now capable of directly substituting and competing with terrestrial fixed and mobile broadband networks," COAI said. PTI
