Prasad also said India will be a $1 trillion opportunity for digital companies in five years
While almost all the members belonging to the ruling National Democratic Alliance took oath by swearing in the name of god, Human Resources Development Minister Prakash Javadekar, who was re-elected to the Upper House from Maharashtra, took oath affirming his allegiance to the Constitution of India.
BSNL, which was formed in 2000, was in the pink of financial health but lost to competition because of inadequate investment in infrastructure expansion that ought to have been provided during past few years, he told Rajya Sabha.
Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Wednesday said they must offer good services to the customers if they want any help from the government.
The Cabinet on Wednesday approved public private partnership mode for the rollout of BharatNet project for broadband services in villages in 16 states with viability gap funding of Rs 19,041 crore, Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said. Prasad said the decision to involve private players was taken after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced on August 15, 2020 that around 6 lakh villages in the country will be connected with broadband in 1,000 days. "The Cabinet has in-principle approved implementation of BharatNet in 16 states in a public private partnership model with total expense of Rs 29,430 crore.
Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said that there were 31 complaints of call drops against the company in 2015
Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad had told Parliament in November that Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Idea and other telecom companies owe the government as much as Rs 1.47 lakh crore in past statutory dues.
Now, telcos will be penalised for call drops.
Manoj Sinha, earlier minister of state for railways, will be tasked to conduct the auction and deal with issues like net neutrality.
The minister said revenue receipts for 2014-15 will be generated from auction of spectrum in 800MHz, 900 MHz and 1800 MHz bands and from annual spectrum usage charges.
The Aam Aadmi Party has demanded the dismissal of Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad alleging a conflict of interest that has prevented him from issuing a notice to Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Jio on the 4G issue, a charge vehemently denied by Prasad who said he never gave advice or appeared for the company.
Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad is learnt to have approached Finance Minister Arun Jaitley for additional funds to carry out schemes committed under Universal Services Obligation fund scheme.
Govt says there is enough spectrum, telcos differ
Apple, which is seeing declining sales elsewhere in the world, is betting big on India for growth as sales here saw an impressive 56 per cent growth in the January-March 2016 quarter.
Performance is considered a major reason why Ravi Shankar Prasad might have had to leave telecom.
The telecom ministry will set up an intelligence unit and a consumer protection system as part of continuing efforts to tackle the menace of pesky calls as well as to take strict action against financial frauds perpetrated using telecom resources.
The telecom companies have also been asked to urgently improve their infrastructure, as the government aims to digitise a host of services.
After assuming office, the Narendra Modi government on Monday constituted a Special Investigative Team to unearth black money.
The minister said the companies have given representation which is being examined by the DoT before taking a final decision.
The world's biggest social network Facebook wants to connect more people to internet in India which accounts for the third largest online user base globally after China and the US but has a very low internet penetration growth rate.
Rejecting Finance Minister P Chidambaram's zero-loss theory in coal allocation scam because no mining was done, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Friday said his view was akin to Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal's repudiation of CAG's estimation of presumptive loss in allocation of 2G spectrum.
India Inc pledges $75 bn on Digital India launch
Telecom equipment from China may face fresh curbs after the Cabinet on Wednesday cleared a proposal to secure telecom infrastructure by designating a "trusted source" for the purchase of equipment by service providers. Briefing reporters after the meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Security headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Law, Telecom and IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said a National Security Directive on Telecommunication Sector has been framed keeping in mind the national security.
Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad made it clear that as of now, the government has no plans to merge BSNL and MTNL.
The government on Wednesday approved a Rs 12,195 crore production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for telecom gear manufacturing in India, a move that will position the nation as a global powerhouse for production of such equipment ahead of 5G roll-outs. The PLI scheme for telecom gear manufacturing will be operational from April 1, 2021.
Telecom and IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said one of the primary focus areas of Digital India is Pillar 5: eKranti - electronic delivery of services.
A Muslim yoga expert will teach yoga to BJP president Amit Shah at a special yoga camp in Patna on June 21 to mark the International Yoga Day celebrations. M I Khan Reports.
The total outstanding dues against Bharti Airtel is Rs 11,235.50 crore.
Call drops may end as govt allows telecom spectrum trading
Attempts are being made to balance the need for health of the sector, consumer interest while complying with the Supreme Court order on statutory dues.
Telecom operators have cited shutting down of mobile towers and lack of spectrum, as the major reasons for call drops
A probe has been initiated to determine the source behind the editing of former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru's profile.
Ignoring objections by political parties, the government on Friday introduced a bill in Lok Sabha to clear legal hurdles in appointment of former Telephone Regulatory Authority of India Chairman Nripendra Misra who joined as principal secretary to Prime Minister Narendra Modi more than a month back.
RCom and Tata Teleservices are the top net losers of subscribers under mobile number portability (MNP) services.
All 'grameen dak sevaks' in rural post offices will be given handheld devices by March 2017.
Top three mobile operators spend $13.6 bln in auction
Minister said the government wants to bring them back to profitability.
Offering lucrative incentives, Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Sunday invited US technology companies to start manufacturing in India, for meeting domestic needs and exports, under the 'Make In India' initiative.
A Parliamentary Committee will discuss the controversial issue of net neutrality on Thursday at a meeting where officials of telecom companies like Airtel, Vodafone and Idea are expected to present their views.
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