SFLC.in's Comments on the Draft Telecom Bill

The Government of India must be lauded for floating the Draft Telecommunications Bill and allowing stakeholders to provide comments. The Telecommunication sector is one of India’s most prized sectors from both - an economic and societal context, and hence, the Department of Telecommunications has a huge role in ensuring universal, resilient, secure and accessible telecommunication services are available for each citizen – whether in rural or urban India. We can then achieve the much sought-after goal of Aatma Nirbhar Bharat.
Telecommunication is a dominant medium of communication in India. Its central role in the dissemination and receipt of knowledge at minimal cost has democratized the promises of the Indian constitution of free speech and expression, freedom to spread and receive knowledge, and social and economic development. Therefore, advances in the networking technologies in the sector, and the infrastructure which supports the telecommunication network and services, become essential in the degree to which such constitutional promises are enjoyed. It follows from this, that the regulation of the telecommunication ecosystem in India has a direct impact on the enjoyment of the fundamental rights of citizens. In essence, regulation which control the networking technologies, and the infrastructure which support the telecommunication ecosystem, effectively control the exercise of said rights. This will not be the first instance in which the regulation of the medium of communication will have a direct right on the fundamental rights of the citizens.
SFLC.in’s comments on the Draft Telecom Bill can be found below: