(Video) Rajya Sabha TV (RSTV) The Big Picture: Challenges in Telecom Sector

Topic: Challenges in Telecom Sector

Guest:

U. K. Srivastava, (Principal Advisor, TRAI)
Ganapathy Subramaniam, (Chief of Bureau, Puthiya Thalaimurai)
Manu Seth, (Former Marketing Head, South Asia, HTC)

Topic Description:

The Department of Telecommunications has asked the finance ministry to offer some GST-related relief to telcos and to bring down import duties of network equipment, but the ministry is not considering any other company specific relief measures as sought by Vodafone Idea. Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, telecom secretary Aruna Sundararajan said the industry needs to speak in a cohesive voice while seeking further financial relief. Sundararajan was speaking after a meeting of the Digital Commission and her comments come a day after industry body Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) wrote to telecom minister Manoj Sinha, urging that the Rs 35,000 crore input tax credit due to telcos from the government be adjusted against spectrum payments and levies as a measure to help carriers overcome financial distress. But, the letter added, that Jio has a dissenting view on the matter. The industry had also called for a rollback of the basic customs duty increase on several telecom equipment in October 2018 and the duties imposed on printed circuit boards used in them in a bid to curb non-essential imports and address its current account deficit as well as encourage the ‘Make in India’ initiative.