Telecom Bill 2023: After Lok Sabha, now Telecommunication Bill 2023 has been passed in Rajya Sabha also. Under this bill, non-auction process will be adopted for allocation of satellite spectrum. For information, let us tell you that Telecom Bill 2023 was approved by voice vote in Rajya Sabha. Let us tell you that this bill gives the freedom to the Central Government to take control of the telecom network in case of any public emergency or in the interest of public security. Today we are going to tell you what the impact of this bill is going to be. Let us know in simple points what is this telecom bill and what effect it is going to have.
3 years jail and fine of Rs 50 lakh
There are strict provisions in this bill to stop fraudulent issuance of SIM cards. Any violation or impersonation will attract imprisonment of up to three years with fine. The minister said that the bill provides for a jail term of up to three years or a fine of up to Rs 50 lakh for a person obtaining a SIM or other telecom resource through fraud, cheating, impersonation. The bill makes it mandatory for companies to issue SIMs after capturing verifiable biometric data of the applicant to prevent misuse of telecom resources.
SIM card spoofing is a punishable offense
There are also strict provisions for crimes related to spoofing or cloning. SIM card cloning has become a major cyber crime threat across the country. Reliance Jio, Airtel and Vodafone-Idea have warned their customers against this on several occasions.
Telecom regulator limits the powers of TRAI
The good news for telecom companies is that the bill curbs the powers of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) by addressing the concerns raised by industry players.
New rules if company surrenders license
The telecom bill eases some rules, such as refund of fees for license and registration in case a company surrenders its permit.
​Prior consent of users required for sending promotional messages
The Bill proposes that prior consent should be taken to receive certain messages like promotions, advertisements etc.
Fine on telecom companies limited to Rs 5 crore
The government has proposed to increase the limit of penalty imposed on telecom operators to Rs 5 crore, which was earlier Rs 50 crore per circle, meaning the maximum penalty on a telecom company will be around Rs 1,100 crore.