Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia conducts second round of stakeholders advisory committees meetings

New Delhi [India], July 16 : Following the productive discussions on the first day, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), under the leadership of Minister of Communications and Development of the North Eastern Region Jyotiraditya Scindia and Dr Chandra Sekhar Pemmasani, Minister of State for Communications, continued the inaugural meetings of the six newly constituted Stakeholders Advisory Committees (SACs).
On the second day, the focus was on additional key areas critical to the telecommunications ecosystem. Today's meetings were held with members of three SACs, including Telecom Service Providers SAC, Internet Service Providers & Infrastructure Providers SAC, and Academicians and Research & Development in the Telecommunications Sector SAC.
Dr Neeraj Mittal, Secretary, Department of Telecommunications (DoT), Madhu Arora, Member (Technology), Manish Sinha, Member (Finance), as well as industry leaders and academia, among others, were present in the meeting.
These committees are designed to facilitate a two-way dialogue with the government on critical matters such as technology promotion, R&D, go-to-market strategies for telecom products, promoting local manufacturing, enabling the manufacturing ecosystem, establishing industry-academia linkages, sharing new ideas, and resolving policy issues.
Addressing the media after the deliberations, Scindia said, "We've identified a rather deep agenda for all three committees. Now, the members of these committees and us will be working together. There are varied schedules for the first presentation of these committees over the next couple of weeks. And then we will be taking each individual issue at a time, delving into the details, and devising an action plan with clear timelines and actionable items so that we can take our sector forward."
The Telecom Service Providers SAC discussed strategies to enhance service delivery and address challenges faced by telecom operators. Key issues aimed at different aspects of the sector, including futuristic & innovative areas of growth, were discussed.
The focus was on improving broadband penetration and infrastructure development. The committee highlighted the need for policy support to accelerate infrastructure rollout and enhance internet accessibility, particularly emphasising the deployment of advanced technologies like fibre optics and 5G.
The focus was on fostering collaboration between academia and the telecom industry. The committee highlighted the importance of industry-academia partnerships in driving innovation and developing a skilled workforce for the telecom sector.
The next meetings of the SACs are scheduled in August where further discussions will continue to build on the foundation laid in this inaugural session.