Communications Ministry driving country’s socio-eco development : Sinha

Speed Post News Network

New Delhi : Manoj Sinha, Minister of State for Communications (Independent Charge), on June 12, 2018, said the Ministry of Communications has established itself as a core enabling unit of the Government of India driving the country’s socio-economic development during the last four years by providing strong digital connectivity support and delivering citizen-centric services – in the true spirit of “Saaf Neeyat, Sahi Vikas”. The Minister was addressing a press conference on June 12 to mark the completion of 4 years of the present Government at the Centre.

Aruna Sundararajan, Secretary, Department of Telecommunications (DoT), and Ananta Narayan Nanda, Secretary, Department of Posts (DoP), joined the Minister on the dais, as he summarised the highlights and achievements of the Ministry of Communications over the last 4 years.

“Our biggest achievements in the area of Telecommunications have been overcoming the pervasive trust deficit through transparent auctions of spectrum and bridging the digital divide in the country by undertaking digital infrastructure projects such as BharatNet on an unprecedented scale,” said  Sinha, according to a PIB release.

“And in the Department of Posts, we have successfully managed to re-imagine the business of the department – with focus on financial inclusion, provision of citizen-centric services using our unmatched reach, and restructuring our operations to meet evolving customer needs,” he added.

The Telecom sector has witnessed revolutionary changes over the last 4 years. They include six-fold increase in Government spending on telecommunications infrastructure and services in the country – from Rs 9,900 crore between 2009-14, to Rs 60,000 crore (actual + planned) between 2014-19, increase in overall tele-density from 75% to 93%, over 75% increase in internet coverage – from 251 million users to 446 million, number of mobile Base Transceiver Stations (BTS) more than doubled – from 7.9 lakh to nearly 18 lakh, countrywide Optical Fibre Cable (OFC) coverage doubled – from 7 lakh km to 14 lakh km, and steep tariff reductions benefiting consumers across the country – average voice tariff declined by 67%, and  average data tariff declined by 93%. There has been seven times growth in broadband access – from 61 million to 412 million subscribers.

The Prime Minister’s motto of “Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas” finds reflection in the Department of Telecom’s efforts to Connect the Unconnected – through rural digital infrastructure projects such as BharatNet, as well as through projects for the North-East Region, Left-Wing Extremism (LWE) Affected Areas, the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and Lakshadweep.

The Department has also taken proactive steps to move the country to the forefront on the global stage in this technology-driven sector. “We missed the 3G and 4G buses. But 5G is a bus we cannot afford to miss,” Sinha said.  A High-Level Forum (HLF) for 5G India has been set up, a 5G test bed is being established through budgetary support, and a progressive and forward-looking Draft National Digital Communications Policy (NDCP) 2018 is already in the public domain setting aspirational targets to guide the department over the next few years, he added.

In these 4 years, the Department of Posts has initiated transformative changes which aim to radically alter the face of Post Offices in the country, Sinha said. From a ‘stagnating business growth’ situation, the Department has now moved to successfully launch citizen-centric services which leverage its unique strengths – unmatched countrywide reach, and strong trust of the people especially in non-metro areas, he said.

Average annual Speed Post revenue has more than doubled – from Rs. 788 crores between 2006-14 to Rs. 1682 crores between 2014-18, revenue of Rs. 415 crore from the eCommerce business in 2017-18, with a growth of more than 20% over the previous financial year, a separate Parcel Directorate in order to focus on this growing business segment, he said