NEW DELHI: The government is likely to back net neutrality in India as unfettered internet access is seen to be crucial for spreading digital literacy as well as for giving a fillip to a startup culture. The view firming up in the higher echelons of the government is for internet access on a "non-discriminatory" basis so that there is "zero burden" on ordinary data consumers.
In the backdrop of growing support for net neutrality, telecom and IT minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said on Monday, "We feel that Internet is one of the finest creations of the human mind. It should have linkages with the common man in a non-discriminatory manner." He added that a committee has been set up in the department of telecommunications (DoT) to help government take a "comprehensive decision" on the matter. The committee will give its report in the second week of May.
Prasad clarified that the committee would be independent of Trai. In other words, even if Trai's recommendations do not conform with the government's view on net neutrality, it will have another set of recommendations made by the committee. The minister said the committee had been set up "because of the gravity of the matter." Prasad refused to make a definitive comment on net neutrality, but stressed the need for making internet available even to the marginalised and poorer sections of the society, especially in view of the government's ambitious e-governance projects like 'Digital India'.
While the debate over tackling net neutrality rages in the world (the US has already come out strongly in favour of net neutrality), Bharti Airtel, India's largest telecom operator, stirred up a hornet's nest last December when it decided to charge higher tariff for internet telephony services like Skype, Viber and Line. Widespread criticism on social media and refusal of other telecom operators such as Vodafone and Idea Cellular to join ranks had forced Airtel to withdraw the plan, though it prompted the government to set up the committee which is now studying the issues related to net neutrality.
The telecom major, however, decided to wade into turbulent waters yet again when earlier this month it came out with a scheme 'Airtel Zero' that grants preferential treatment for websites that pay for it. This is again seen as violating the concept of net neutrality with critics saying that it will stifle the start-up culture while being beneficial for deep-pocketed companies.
Also read: AP killings: AISMK demands Centre’s intervention
Trai's consultation paper has also elicited reactions from a section of MPs, such as Tathagata Satpathy and Rajeev Chandrasekhar, who have come out in strong support of net neutrality. BJD MP Satpathy said that violation of net neutrality will restrict the penetration of internet in India and act against the thriving eco-system of start-ups. Chandrasekhar, an independent Rajya Sabha member, tweeted, "#NetNeutrality ensures non-discriminatory access to services to all consumers, and is core to #DigitalIndia". He further tweeted that the internet is "too important to let private players to be the ones making the rules."
Also read: ‘SIT probe into encounter eyewash’
Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com
No comments:
Post a Comment