The telecom divide

Differences in the sector need to be settled swiftly

The Digital Communications Commission’s (DCC’s) approval of a cumulative penalty of Rs 3,050 crore on Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea for refusing to provide points of interconnection (PoIs) to Reliance Jio has once again brought out the sharp divide in the industry. The affected telcos have issued statements that legal recourse will be explored. In any case, the DCC, a government panel comprising several top bureaucrats across ministries, is not the last word in the matter. It is for the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) to take a decisive call on the penalty after weighing the arguments of all stakeholders. Incidentally,