Decoding National Digital Communications Policy (NDCP) 2018

A robust, competitive landscape, which ensures availability of new communication technologies, services and applications, is imperative for the growth of GDP, productivity and creation of new jobs in the economy. The initiative to connect India and provide broadband connectivity to all citizens will significantly strengthen India’s social economic progress. The policy will hugely boost the Digital India objectives and encourage innovation in India.

Expanding the connectivity to all uncovered areas would mean expansion of the market segments for variety of products and services. This would encourage further innovation.

The policy focuses on creating a roadmap for emerging technologies such as 5G, Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, Internet of Things, Cloud Computing and M2M by simplifying licensing and regulatory frameworks and ensuring appropriate security frameworks. Experiments with new technologies are unable to gain momentum because of the regulatory hurdles for operating in India. The policy seeks to remove regulatory challenges and create attractive investment opportunities in new technology segments and stimulate the deployment of new technologies in India.

The policy supports the growth of telecom sector in India which has constantly been in financial crisis. The implementation of the policy will unleash multiple opportunities for telecom service providers, internet service providers, infrastructure providers, handset and equipment manufacturers, satellite communication providers, academic community, the innovators and start-ups.

The implementation of strategies outlined in the policy shall promote investment in various industry sectors including telecom, R&D, manufacturing, data centres. Accelerating the deployment of robotics, IoT and other similar technologies will lead to efficiency gains and better decision making through data analytics.

While the policy is a welcome move, overall success however shall depend on its execution and implementation.