TRAI calls for DoT to reject industry protests and stand by recommendations

Despite mounting opposition from operators and diplomats, the Telecoms Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has stood by its controversial recommendations to raise the reserve price for spectrum. According to the Hindustan Times, the TRAI in a ‘strongly worded’ letter requested that the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) support the TRAI’s proposals and reject demands from industry players. Defending the price hike, the TRAI said that the recommended cost levels would ensure that the government got the full value of the spectrum without compromising the industry’s profitability or adversely effecting costs to end users. As reported by CommsUpdate yesterday, a growing number of operators, including Telenor and Sistema, are considering quitting the Indian market if the proposals are accepted, and future foreign investment in the sector has been called into question.