Dr Murali Manohar Joshi, chairman of the Public Accounts Committee, told newsmen that the claim made by Kapil Sibal, who holds temporary charge of telecom ministry was contradicted by Central Bureau of Investigation director A P Singh, who appeared before the committee in Parliament.
Announcing that he would take up the issue with the telecom ministry, he demanded a probe by market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India into the hammering of Reliance Communications scrip in the last few days.
When educated ministers like Kapil Sibal and P Chidambaram are forced to defend the indefensible it shows a certain desperation in the top power structures in the ruling UPA, says Virendra Kapoor.
Around 83 per cent people in a survey in India shared that 5G is one of the factors they consider while buying a new phone and nearly three in every five existing premium smartphone users are looking to upgrade their device to the next generation technology, according to a report released by Cybermedia Research. According to the survey, 81 per cent respondents prefer Oppo for 5G smartphone and 79 per cent opted for Samsung. The global survey conducted in India, China and West Europe found that 5G users, where the service is available, have experienced better video calls, faster downloads and ability to stream ultra high definition videos and satisfaction level from 5G services is around 80 per cent.
They say we get the politicians we deserve. In that case, all of us need to do better, immediately. For our elected leaders rarely make us proud; most of the times, they make us cringe. Rediff.com takes a look at politicians across India who made headlines this year, often for the wrong reasons, rarely for the right ones.
Justice Shivraj Patil will take over as the Lokayukta in Karnataka once Justice Santosh Hegde retires in August.Justice Patil, who belongs to the Lingayat community of Karnataka, was recently in the news when he was the appointed to probe the lapses in the sale of 2G spectrum by the telecom ministry. Justice Patil will take over as the top anti-corruption official of Karnataka at a crucial time, when the state government is trying to play down the report on illegal mining.
His party colleague and successor in the telecom ministry A Raja and his relative Kanimozhi are currently in Tihar jail in connection with the scam.
HITS is a new cable-distribution platform that is similar to the direct-to-home service. It allows distribution of digital-quality cable channels via satellite to cable operators at one go. For consumers, it means access to quality cable channels via a set-top box at reduced monthly rates, while for the cable industry, it means faster and cost-effective digitalisation.
In order to increase teledensity, particularly in the rural areas, the telecom ministry is planning to put in place common facility, like towers, which could be shared by private players, Union Minister for Telecommunications and IT, Dayanidhi Maran
If there is one single fault among the common people, it is the willingness to send the same kind of people time and again to Parliament and tolerate the venal ways of the people appointed to serve the citizens, says Mahesh Vijapurkar.
The Ministry of Home Affairs in the past has raised concerns on increasing FDI in telecom sector.
The government has so far received about Rs 26,000 crore from AGR payments, including adhoc/ buffer amounts given by telcos to meet any reconciliation differences with the telecom department.
The ministry wanted to use spectrum in the 700-MHz band for mobile TV services.
The Cellular Operators Association of India, the lobby of GSM players, has already petitioned telecom tribunal TDSAT challenging the government's decision to alow dual technology for mobile services and also spectrum allocation norms as suggested by the telecom regulator Telecom Regulatory Authority of India.
Over eight years after third generation (3G) mobile technology made its commercial debut in Japan, Indian phone users got only a taste of official flip-flop on roll-out of the service during 2009 that also saw CBI raiding telecom ministry over spectrum allocation.
The Department of Tele-communications is close to allocating start-up spectrum in seven more circles, in addition to Tamil Nadu, where the process is set to begin next week. According to the telecom ministry's plan, the companies would get 4.4 MHz each and the allocation would be completed within a fortnight.
Reliance Communications (RCom) has paid Rs 1,651 crore as licence fee to start pan-India GSM operations.
The apex body of CDMA operators, has shot off a letter to the telecom ministry alleging that the GSM operators were given spectrum "way beyond their licences".
Every defaulter is not a wilful defaulter who has the capability of paying back and is yet not servicing the bank loan, observes Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch the much-awaited 5G services in India on October 1, 2022, an official release said on Friday. According to the release, 5G to be launched by the Prime Minister in select cities, will progressively cover the entire country over the next couple of years. The cumulative economic impact of 5G on India is estimated to reach $450 billion by 2035. Capable of supporting ultra-high-speed internet services, the fifth generation or 5G is expected to unleash new economic opportunities and societal benefits, serving as a transformational force for Indian society.
India and the US on Friday said they have started talks to put in place a strategic framework for human space flight by year-end as they plan to send an Indian astronaut to the International Space Station in 2024.
Vodafone has to sell its entire stake in Airtel following new norms issued by government.
'Our mandate is to work in a transparent manner, keeping two objectives in mind - consumer interest and growth of the telecom sector.'
The government has ordered internet companies to block 67 pornographic websites following court orders and for violating the new IT rules that were issued in 2021.
Ringing Bells has said the manufacturing cost of the phone is about Rs 2,500.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday reviewed the preparedness to deal with the situation arising out of the likely formation of Cyclone Jawad that is expected to hit the North Andhra Pradesh-Odisha coast and directed officials to take every possible measure to ensure that people are safely evacuated.
Reliance Infocomm has asked the government to reconsider the penalty imposed on it on charges of illegal routing of international calls, saying the telecom ministry's action was "misconceived and unjustified."
Vodafone Idea's (Vi's) search for a lifeline has turned longer and tougher even as it continues to lose customers and delay vendor payments. Vi's much-needed Rs 1,600-crore fundraising plan got stuck due to the government's silence on picking up a proposed 33 per cent equity in the financially stressed telco. The development spells further trouble for the company, which has an overall debt pile of Rs 2.2 trillion, including hefty dues to the government.
Gautam Adani's alleged proximity to Narendra Modi may dent the latter's self-styled image of incorruptibility, points out Kanika Datta.
After the Union comptroller and auditor-general saying there'd been a loss of Rs 10.67 lakh crore in allotment of coal blocks, the draft Request For Proposal (RFP) for new allocations has strong clauses for cancellation for breaches on this count.
The telecom to look at opportunities to acquire another firm in India.
Given the security dilemma prevailing between India and China, India should curb the operation of Chinese telecom companies in India, asserts Dr Rup Narayan Das.
The price offered is about a quarter of the value set by the govt in an auction that was scheduled for March 2013 but never took place.
Before the pandemic hit the world and led to shutdowns, the company had received nearly half a dozen offers. But bidders are now withdrawing. They want to reassess the situation. They want to conserve cash and avoid acquisition.
Vodafone Idea (Vi) is in continuous talks with network vendors to finalise its 5G rollout plans, Vodafone Idea CEO Akshaya Moondra said. "We are in early stages of 5G deployment. "5G is an important development and we are keeping our eyes on it," Moondra said on Wednesday in a post-result analyst call. Already five months behind rivals Jio and Airtel in the 5G race, Vi's efforts will be on the deployment of 5G in target geographies.
A special court on Thursday acquitted all accused in the 2G spectrum allocation scam cases. The scam relates to the granting of 2G spectrum licence allocations in 2007-08 which caused, according to a report by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India, a loss of Rs 1.76 lakh crore. Here is a detailed timeline of how the case came to light and how it has progressed over the years:
Modi called for timely evacuation of those involved in off-shore activities.
The government is likely to extend fiscal incentives for production of toys, bicycles and leather and footwear in the forthcoming budget as it looks to expand production linked incentive (PLI) scheme to cover more high-employment potential sectors, sources said. The government has already rolled out the scheme with an outlay of about Rs 2 lakh crore for as many as 14 sectors, including automobiles and auto components, white goods, pharma, textiles, food products, high efficiency solar PV modules, advance chemistry cell and speciality steel. The scheme aims to make domestic manufacturing globally competitive and create global champions in manufacturing, and it is yielding solid results, sources said.
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