TRAI celebrates silver jubilee

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) celebrated 25th year of its creation on Tuesday. The celebrations were held across the country on the occasion of the World Telecommunication Day.

The TRAI was established with effect from 20th February 1997 by an Act of Parliament, called the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India Act, 1997, to regulate telecom services, including fixation/revision of tariffs for telecom services which were earlier vested in the Central Government.

The authority of TRAI was initially confined to telecommunications sector but later extended to broadcasting sector as well.

TRAI’s mission is to create and nurture conditions for the growth of telecommunications in the country in a manner and at a pace that will enable India to play a leading role in an emerging global information society.

It is noteworthy that TRAI has always accorded top priority to promote orderly growth of both the telecom and broadcasting sectors while ensuring protection of the interests of the service providers and consumers. In the past 25 years, TRAI has also played an important role in catalysing the growth in the sectors through its recommendatory as well as regulatory rules.

“We would like to congratulate the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) today for the completion of 25 years of their service in the development and growth of the sector which is integral in the country’s pathway to achieving the Digital India vision. In the last couple of years, TRAI has worked closely with the Government of India and service providers to create an ecosystem which is crucial especially today as the industry readies to usher in 5G to catalyze the digital economy. We will continue to work in alignment with TRAI and hopefully put up suggestions and recommendations which are beneficial for the sector. We are thankful to TRAI for their exceptional work until now, appreciate their hard work done for the sector, and look forward to many more fruitful years of working together.” Lt Gen Dr SP Kochhar, Director General, COAI congratulated.

T.R.Dua, Director, General, Digital Infrastructure Providers Association (DIPA) sent in his congratulations. “Much has changed in the last two and a half decades since TRAI first came into being as the independent statutory body, tasked with protecting the interests of telecom operators and consumers and promoting the orderly growth of the sector. Starting from a nascent market that had a little over 14.5 million phone connections in 1997 and “telephone on demand” was an early policy goal, India has grown to become the second-largest telecom market in the world, boasting of over 1.17 billion subscribers today. The dawn of the Internet age ushered in a new wave of changes, creating immense opportunities for both service providers as well as users of Internet services. Today India has the highest average data consumption per user in the world with one of the most affordable rates. On behalf of DIPA and its members, I take this opportunity to congratulate all the employees of TRAI, past and present, and wish them greater glory in the years to come.”

CT Bureau