New penalty rule for telecom operators soon

The government will soon finalise new penalty rules for telecom operators, Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said on Monday.

"The process of rationalisation for imposition of penalty is under active consideration," Prasad said. When asked about the specific time line, he said it would be put in place "very soon".

An inter-ministerial panel had approved a new penalty scheme with five slabs ranging from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 50 crore for violation of norms by mobile operators in March 2014. But, these are yet to be notified.

Under the proposed scheme, fines start with a warning that invite a penalty of Rs 1 lakh for minor violation and move up in line with severity.

Apprehending that they may be charged of favouring telecom operators, officials of the department of Telecommunications had started imposing maximum penalty of Rs 50 crore even for minor mistakes.

"Earlier, the elements of flexibility and discretion were not there," Prasad said.

He said the next two years will be great for expansion of mobile services driven by quality.