New Delhi, July 5, 2024 – The Ministry of Communications (Department of Telecom) has responded to recent misleading claims about the increase in mobile service tariffs. Emphasizing a market driven by demand and supply, the Ministry underlined its commitment to protecting subscriber interests, fostering growth through investment in the latest technologies, and ensuring the financial viability of the sector.
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), established under the TRAI Act of 1997, is the independent regulator overseeing telecommunication service rates in India. Over the past two decades, mobile service rates have been kept under forbearance, resulting in some of the lowest costs for subscribers worldwide. For instance, an average mobile service package in India, including 140 minutes of voice, 70 SMS, and 2GB of data, costs USD 1.89 per month, offering practically unlimited voice and 18GB of data.
In comparison, mobile service costs in other countries are significantly higher, such as USD 8.84 in China and USD 49 in the USA.
The Ministry highlighted that mobile service tariffs are determined by market dynamics within the regulatory framework provided by TRAI. The government does not interfere with these market decisions, as they fall under TRAI’s domain. The recent tariff increase is the first in over two years, during which telecom service providers (TSPs) have made substantial investments in rolling out 5G services. This has resulted in a significant increase in median mobile speeds to 100 Mbps and an improvement in India’s international ranking from 111 in October 2022 to 15 today.
The Ministry stressed the importance of financial viability for continued investment in advanced technologies like 5G, 6G, IoT, and M2M for Industry 4.0, while ensuring subscriber interests and sector growth.
The last decade has seen exponential growth in service affordability due to progressive government policies, leading to significant non-tax revenue from transparent spectrum auctions.
For further details, please visit the official Press Information Bureau (PIB) release here.
Source: PIB Delhi
