Telecom FDI row may end

Tough monitoring proposed for remote access.

The final guidelines for raising the foreign direct investment ceiling in telecommunications to 74 per cent may be issued soon, with the Union Cabinet set to consider a proposal to allow operators remote access to their telephone networks, though with a stiff monitoring mechanism in place.

Under remote access, data or calls made on telephone networks in the country can be remotely managed from a site elsewhere.

The monitoring mechanism is one of the contentious pre-conditions for raising FDI in telecommunication service operators from 51 per cent to 74 per cent.

Once approved by the Cabinet, the move will affect all big players in the business, including Hutchison Essar Ltd and Bharti Airtel.

The proposal prepared by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) makes it mandatory for operators to keep an audit trail of all remote access activities for six months, send a compliance report twice a year to the government, take permission from security agencies for locations in India and abroad through which remote access is being undertaken, and keep a mirror image of all remote access information available for online monitoring.

It suggests the setting up of a centralised lawful interception and monitoring system. Also, while the chief technical officer of such a company could be a foreigner cleared by security agencies, the chief officer dealing with network operation (network administrator) has to be a resident Indian national.

To strengthen the monitoring system further, the vigilance technical monitoring cells of the DoT will be augmented and will have representation from security agencies.

Apart from technical vigilance, these cells will undertake activities concerning security aspects at the premises of telecom service operators.

The proposals are expected to come up for discussion before the Cabinet in the next few days.

Norms relating to allowing remote access, appointment of foreigners to top positions and taking away veto powers from Indian shareholders with 10 per cent equity in telecom joint ventures are some of the key changes in the original guidelines that are expected to be notified after the current deadline of April 2 expires.

If the proposal is approved by the Cabinet, the DoT has said that it will extend the deadline by another three months.

The new conditions are based on the recommendations of a high level group that was set up by the Cabinet last December to suggest safeguards and examine security concerns over allowing remote access to the country's telecom network from foreign countries, in the light of spreading terrorism and growing security threats.