Hiccups for telecom fiber rollout with higher duty on optic fiber

Local optic fiber manufacturers cheer the move

As optic fiber and cable producers cheer the hike in basic customs duty on optic fiber, analysts and telcos feel that there could be initial hiccups until the domestic makers gear up production to meet the enhanced demand. The industry also expects a 2-3 per cent rise in their fiberisation costs for the time being.

According to sources from the telecom operating companies, they already source a large part of their requirement from the leading Indian companies in this space. However, some of the specialty cables are still sourced from abroad, largely Chinese manufacturers in this space. At present, Indian