The Government of India has started its process of setting up the updating of IT laws by releasing the draft of the Indian Telecommunications Act 2022 (ITCA2022).
Before we set about studying the details of the proposed Bill, we need to understand that the previous attempt to repeal Indian Telegraph Act 1885 , the Indian Wireless Telegraphy Act, 1933 and the Telegraph Wires (Unlawful Possession) Act, 1950 were made in 2001 when a draft Communication Convergence Act was proposed.
This act did not get passed and later was forgotten. Now the new Telecom Act appears to revive the attempt to replace these acts. Hence several provisions of this new Act are similar to provisions suggested in the Communication Convergence Act and it would be educative to refer to the earlier act to understand if there has been any substantial changes.
I am not sure if the copy of the earlier Bill is easily accessible by others and hence I am reproducing here the links to the old Bill and some of the articles that had been published at that time on naavi.com (now the domain is occupied by another company) and now available in naavi.org.
Links to a few other Articles written at that time is given below.
A re-look at these may help us formulate views on the new Telecom Bill.
Communication Convergence bill-What’s Wrong?
Having seen some of the positive aspects of the bill, let’s turn our attention on some of the negative aspects of the Bill that needs some attention…
Communication Convergence bill-What’s Right?
In the recent seminar held at Chennai to discuss the Communication Convergence Bill draft, many media passed highly critical comments on the draft. They held that the draft Bill is “Draconian” and should not be passed in its present form.
It is to be accepted that the purpose of law is to ensure that there is an equitable distribution of scarce resources in the society. If legislation does not “Regulate”, there will not be “Freedom for All” but only “Freedom for the Privileged”. It is one of the fundamental duties of any Government that society needs to be regulated if it has to remain “Civilized”.
Read what Naavi.com has to say on What’s Right in the Draft Bill?
Convergence Bill- The Right of Way
One of the major concerns of the Infrastructure builders in the Telecom industry has been the delays in the implementation of projects caused by legal hurdles in laying inter city and intra city cables. Hence the industry was keenly observing what was in store for them in the Communication Convergence Bill ……Read the Detailed Story
Convergence Bill- The Battle for the Spectrum
One of the important provisions of the Communication Convergence Bill refers to the policies regarding Frequency Spectrum Management covered under Chapter VI. …Read the Detailed Story
Communication Convergence Bill.. Offences and Penalties
A cursory glance of the provisions indicates that the law has been framed rather aggressively to protect the licensees and their facilities from being tampered with and misused by criminals. To that extent it is a welcome measure. However a thought may be spared to think whether the laws place too much of power in the hands of officials and police which can be misused for harassing honest Citizens who may appear to have strayed into usage of facilities which may turn out to be unlawful…..Read the Detailed Story
Communication Convergence Bill..The Regulatory Framework
The Communication Convergence Bill (CCB) will operate a regulatory mechanism that will revolve around….Read the Detailed Story
Communication Convergence Bill..The objectives
One of the basic objectives of this Act is to provide for a regulatory mechanism, which facilitates convergence…..Read the Detailed Story
Communication Convergence Bill Draft is Now Here
The much awaited Communication Convergence bill draft is now available for public comments upto February 28. A Copy of the Bill is available Here.
Comments on the bill from naavi.com will be available through this column during the next few days.
The New Media Forum which was recently formed at Chennai would be conducting a seminar in Chennai shortly on Convergence bill and collecting the views from industry experts on the Bill. A consolidated memorandum would then be submitted to the Ministry regarding the comments of the forum.
Visitors who want to add their views are welcome to send their views to Naavi
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