The Department of Telecom has granted yet another extension on the deadline for receipt of public comments on the draft Telecommunication Bill 2022. The ministry of communication on Thursday notified the new deadline for the comments is not set to November 20.

"In response to the requests received from several stakeholders, the Ministry has decided to further extend the last date for receipt of comments till 20th November 2022," the Ministry said in a notification.

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Indian Telecommunication Bill 2022

The draft of the bill was released on September 2021. Earlier, the last date for comments on the bill was October 20, which got extended to October 30. It was once again extended to November 10.

The bill seeks to replace the archaic Indian Telegraph Act, 1885, the Indian Wireless Telegraphy Act, 1933 and the Telegraph Wires (Unlawful Possession) Act, 1950. The draft bill has a provision to ensure a smooth transition, wherein the repealed laws would remain in place till the new ones become effective.

India telecom operators
A rickshaw puller speaks on his mobile phone as he waits for customers in front of advertisement billboards belonging to telecom companies in Kolkata February 3, 2014.REUTERS/Rupak De Chowdhuri

One of the major changes in the new bill is that it would monitor the voice, video and data communication services provided by OTT platforms like WhatsApp and also require them to get a license from the government for business operations, similar to other telecom providers. In one of the key proposals, the draft Telecommunication Bill 2022 seeks to waive off fees and penalty of telecom and internet service providers.

(Agency inputs added)

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