INDIA

STATEMENT BY Mr D. S. MATHUR
SECRETARY, TELECOM
MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS & IT

Mr. Chairman
Excellencies
Distinguished Plenipotentiaries
Secretary General of ITU and other elected officials of ITU
Ladies and Gentlemen

I am very happy to be here on the occasion of Plenipotentiary Conference of the ITU being held in this beautiful coastal city of Antalya. I am sure this Conference of the ITU hosted by this great nation is going to be one of the historic Conferences which will pave the way for making the ITU even more vibrant and responsive to the needs and aspirations of the whole mankind. I convey appreciation of my delegation to the Government of Turkey for hosting this historic event and for their warm hospitality.

ITU, the oldest intergovernmental organization which was created in 1865, is fostering excellent international cooperation between all Member States of the Union for promoting and harmonizing use of telecommunications of all kinds. The telecommunication technology is changing telecommunication environment to provide most optimal and efficient solutions to various problems facing the humanity. Government of India attaches great importance to the activities of the ITU.

India is the world’s largest democracy. It has institutions that are deeply rooted in the tenets of democracy and justice. We have a transparent, predictable and secure environment for development of telecommunication by domestic and foreign private investors. The Telecommunication sector in India is being steered by Ministry of Communications and Information Technology through the Department of Telecommunications (DOT). The regulatory function has already been entrusted to a separate independent body through an Act of the Parliament.

India is proud to be playing an active role in this global endeavour, ever since it became a Member of ITU in 1868. International community has reposed faith in India by electing her to the ITU Council since 1952 and we are thankful for the same. I note with great satisfaction that Dr Manohar Balaji Sarvate made valuable contribution to the work of ITU while serving as Secretary General from 1965-1967. He unfortunately died in harness. India continues to contribute significantly at various fora of ITU.

We wish to express our commitment to the international telecommunity that India would continue to contribute meaningfully to the ITU in future, and we hope that international telecommunity would repose confidence in our spirit of cooperation and constructive work.

India has one of the five largest telephone networks in the world with more than 170 million telephones and is making rapid strides to provide telephone connectivity in every nook and corner of our vast country. The Telecom Sector has received national recognition as the key driver for development and growth. Presently, we are adding more than 6 million telephone connections per month, which is the largest growth in the World.

I am happy to inform that the independent regulatory environment in India is promoting healthy competition between various service providers and ensures that the common user is not neglected. We have made a mechanism for fulfilling Universal Service Obligation wherein all the operators contribute towards providing universal access to telecom services.

India has been steadily making progress in space technology and its applications. The main thrust in our space program is towards national development especially in the areas of communication, broadcasting, developmental communications, distance education, earth exploration services, space sciences, etc. The national space policy allows participation of private sector. I am happy to state that the Indian Satellite program has been able to achieve successful coordination with the comity of nations and it points to the way international cooperation can be fruitful in critical areas of technology.

Recognizing that radio frequency spectrum and geo-stationary satellite orbit are limited natural resources, Government of India attaches great significance to spectrum management and radio regulatory process. It is essential that these resources are used rationally, efficiently and economically so that equitable access is available for all Member States. With the emergence of new technologies which are heavily dependent on wireless communications and with astounding growth of telecommunication services all over the world, spectrum management process has become extremely complex and intricate. It is necessary that all the spectrum and orbit users, whether government or private, work in the spirit of mutual understanding and cooperation and utilize these resources in the most optimal manner. ITU has been doing tremendous job in this direction.

India has also achieved impressive growth in the field of software development and export of this potential. The Government of India considers information technology as an agent of transformation of every facet of human life, which will bring about a knowledge based society in the 21st Century and as such has taken several policy initiatives for promoting and facilitating such activities on a large scale.

While the Indian Telecom sector has been opened to a variety of technologies and equipment from all over the world , Indian industry has not lagged behind and is making rapid strides in innovating and adopting new technologies suited to Indian conditions. The Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT) was established in India to develop technologies for the growth and digitalisation of the Indian Telecom network. The presence of over 24 million lines based on C-DOT technology in the network, manufactured by over 20 different corporations, amply demonstrates the quality of technology transfer package and support provided by C-DOT. Similarly the Indian Telephone Industries (ITI) Established in the year 1948, has been spearheading the transformation from legacy systems to state of the art digital systems. The Telecommunications Consultants India Limited provides consultancy and project management services around the globe. Our aim is to make India a hub for telecom manufacturing by facilitating more & more telecom specific Special Economic Zones. We are also setting up export promotion councils for promotion of export of telecom equipments.

Mr. Chairman, we are aware that more than half of the world’s population is still struggling to get access to basic voice telephony. I am sure that this Conference would be able to make appropriate policies to bridge this divide in global telecommunications. India has developed high level of technical competence and managerial skills supported by appropriate manufacturing base and training facilities. We would like to share our expertise and facilities with other countries, in the spirit of cooperation to ensure telecommunications for all.

I assure you, Mr. Chairman, that my delegation would work in the spirit of mutual cooperation and would do the utmost to achieve the greatest good of the greatest number. I wish the Conference a great success.

Thank you