Telecom for Inclusive Growth

The two-day
international conference and exhibition, India Telecom 2009, is a much awaited
event among all the stakeholders of the telecom industry. In its fourth year,
the event is being organized by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce
and Industry (FICCI) in association with the Department of Telecommunications,
Ministry of Communication and Information Technology.

Thiru A Raja, Union Minister of Communication and
Information Technology inaugurated the curtain raiser of 'India Telecom 2009' on
October 30, 2009.

The theme for this year is 'telecom for inclusive growth',
which will have a special session by our former president, Dr APJ Abdul Kalam.
The reason for choosing this theme was justified by Thiru A Raja. "The apt theme
has been chosen, as it signifies the urgent need for expanding telecom services
to reach out to each and every citizen, even in the remote rural areas," said
Raja.

The objective of the conference is to provide a platform
for informative and interactive sessions with the prime movers of the telecom
sector across various spheres-like the government policy makers, industrial
leaders, academia, and potential investors. The focus of the forum will be to
enhance technologies and solutions that will help the Indian telecom industry to
move away from an exclusive zone.

Last year, the event, with the key theme 'connecting rural
India', became a major platform for exchange of ideas and thoughts from the
stalwarts of the industry. Service providers also showcased their latest
technology and advancement in the telecom sector. The event became a major
networking platform with more than 17,114 visitors from the industry,
government, and related associations attending it. It is worth mentioning that
it was in this event only that the 3G mobile services were formally launched by
the Hon'ble Prime Minister of India, Dr Manmohan Singh.

This year the event envisions exploring and examining
technology development for the future manufacturers, so as to compete at all
levels, and also to successfully meet the challenges of the rising domestic
demands. The idea is to cater to the increasing demands of the subscribers, who
come from the bottom of the pyramid.

The premier conference has been divided into many
sessions. Day one will have sessions on subjects like rural telecom: bridging
the telecom divide; and, India as a 'hub' for telecom equipment manufacturing &
exports. The house will then be thrown for an open discussion with expert
officials from DoT, Trai, DIT on regulatory issues. Deliberations will also be
made on eco-friendly and energy-efficient solutions. The discussion will overall
encompass debating on 'India as an extensive marketplace for the mobile
industry'. The opportunities for Indian manufacturers will also be contemplated.

The first day will revolve around the strategies of the
Indian telecom space as a whole; and the second day will delve into exploring
new frontiers for the telecom industry after the financial meltdown. Topics
which have been abuzz the whole year like MNP, VAS, mobile banking, m-commerce,
future generation network and services, and managed services will also be
discussed. The last session of the event will be deliberation on the regulatory
and policy environment in the current times, which needs to pro-actively take
cognizance of the emerging technologies and convergence in the sector.

As the industry reaches the milestone of surpassing of 500
mn subscribers in the country, hopefully, India Telecom 2009 will play a
catalytic role in achieving 'inclusive growth' for millions.

The landmark event will end with a closing address by Dr
Manmohan Singh.

Archana Singh

archanasi@cybermedia.co.in