Change methodology to calculate penalties, Telecom Commission tells DoT

The Telecom Commision, the apex policy making wing of the Union communications ministry, has dismissed the recommendations of an inter-ministerial panel that was asked to determine the penalty for breach of licence conditions by mobile phone companies.

"The recommendations of the inter-ministerial committee are unacceptable as they amount to lowering of the upper limit of penalty that is part of the licence agreement," says an internal TC note reviewed by ET.

Instead, the TC wants the telecom department to frame a set of internal guidelines on determining the size of penalty on a case-to-case basis depending on the gravity of the violation.

It has also called for constitution of a smaller panel comprising members of the the department’s licencing, finance and wireless access wings to propose a suitable penalty for each individual licence condition breach, and place the same to the telecom secretary and communications minister for final approval.

The Telecom Commision believes the quantum of penalty should be determined only after factoring in the level of a licencee’s culpability, the potential revenue loss to the government, the net wrongful gains made by the erring mobile phone company and the level of deterrence merited.

It also calls for stringent action against all telcos that compromise on the national security parameters in the licence agreement. "Security conditions cannot be compromised and any breach in this light should be dealt with strictly," says the internal TC communique.