Cellular Operators Association of India and the Association of Unified Service Providers of India (AUSPI) have asked the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) to notify the graded penalty regime soon. The industry associations are of the view that the after the notification, the new system should be implemented with retrospective effect. They believe that it is necessary so that the telecom industry does not suffer due to government delays and the applications of the graded penalty system.

As per the graded penalty system, the maximum penalty as recommended by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has been fixed at Rs 100 million. The penalties on the telecom operators will be based on a grade system where the quantum will depend on parameters such as the impact on environment, subscribers, national security and the government exchequer.

Earlier in 2013, a committee appointed by DoT had formulated a rationalised approach to penalise telecom companies while also reducing down the penalties for non-substantive violations, such as the late submission of self-assessment reports and the absence of certification documents.