Trai stresses need for reference interconnect order

In its bid to promote competition and access to international bandwidth, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) has reiterated the need for a Reference Interconnect Order (RIO) and cable landing station (CLS) access.

Industry sources said the RIO will help resolve the tussle between Reliance Communications and Videsh Sanchar Nigam Ltd over CLS access on the Flag Europe Asia cable that has a landing station in Mumbai.

In a letter to the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) on September 15, the regulator has also sought amendments in the international long distance licence and gave its suggestions on the interconnect issue, stating that it required "urgent attention by the licensor."

"Equal access to bottleneck facility at CLS, including landing facilities for submarine cables by licensed operators on the basis of non-discrimination, without any sunset clause, should be mandated," the letter said.

Trai has also emphasised that the "regulator may also determine and specify cost-based access charges through its regulation. "The ILDO owning a CLS should also be mandated to publish, with prior approval of the regulator, the terms and conditions for all such access provision," it said.

"The incumbent ILD operator, VSNL, is at present the only operator that has the capability to offer diversity and redundancy in submarine cable capacities as it owns four CLSs," it adding, "on the other hand the Flag cable system has to depend upon VSNL's CLS in Mumbai," the letter said.