Budget 2018 Gets Thumbs Down from Telecom Sector

The Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) has said that the telecom industry is deeply disappointed that none of its key demands were heeded in union budget 2018.

"We had sought a reduction in levies and taxes, and an urgent intervention is critical for resuscitating the sector, which is currently experiencing its worst financial health and hyper competition. We reiterate our four key asks, reduction extremely high and unsustainable levies and taxes, reduction in BCD on 4G LTE Equipment, clarity on RoW related taxation at the state level, and clarification on lowering the tax rate to 1% on discounts extended to small dealers," said Rajan S Mathews, Director General, COAI.

"While, the FM has emphasized the importance of moving to a digital economy, the actual digital highway, which is telecom has found no mention in terms of substantive support, unlike road, railway, highways, electricity, which have received substantial mention. We are saddened to see that telecom which is the bedrock for moving the Digital economy forward, continues to remain an Orphan," he said.

Meanwhile, COAI applauded the government’s steps in doubling the allocation for Centres of Excellence across the country to be championed by the DST.

"We, are also enthused to see that Niti Aayog, will now be spearheading a national program to direct efforts in Artificial Intelligence, Quantum Computing, Blockchain, Robotics, and Digital as a way of life. The industry welcomes these timely initiatives. The support extended to IIT Chennai for an indigenous 5G test bed is also a welcome move. We are also happy to see that the allocation of Digital India has been doubled and the government proposes to set up 5 lakh WiFi hotspots. On Ease of Doing Business, he has incentivized the states identifying over 3,000 parameters and introduced competitiveness amongst themselves, through a ranking mechanism.

The FM, while recognizing infrastructure as a key to growth has pushed the implementation of the Smart City Mission and 99 Smart cities have been approved but it is critical that telecom not be paid a lip service, as it is an essential, intrinsic infrastructure core, for a resurgent India and a thriving Digital Economy. ­­ Like the emphasis on Bharat Net, we hope that the substantial asks of the telecom sector can be addressed for speedy infrastructure rollout across the country to truly serve the poorest of the poor and truly bridge the digital divide between India and Bharat, Mathews said.