I&B Ministry
Spectrum auctions to be done in timely, fair & transparent way: Ravi Shankar Prasad
NEW DELHI: Communications and Information Technology Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad has assured the industry that the auction of spectrum in the future too would be conducted in a timely, fair and transparent manner.
The hallmark will be good governance and “the road map will be fully disclosed in advance so that industry can put its act together in a planned manner,” he said.
Inaugurating ‘Digital Bharat 2015,’ the first edition of FICCI’s platform for having transformative exchanges and deliberations, organized jointly with the Department of Telecommunications, Ministry of Communications & IT, Prasad said that the ‘Digital India’ programme was party-neutral, ideology-neutral and Centre-State-neutral. “It aims at bridging the urban-rural divide and is committed to ensure digital inclusion. I would like to see every mason and carpenter in the country using his smart phone to enhance his business and income,” he added.
The last spectrum auction, the biggest so far, that ended in March this year fetched about Rs 1.10 lakh crore to the government.
The Minister also launched the FICCI-EY report titled ‘Speeding Ahead on the Telecom and Digital Economy Highway.’
Telecom secretary Rakesh Garg said that the three ambitious and visionary programmes – Make in India, Digital India and Smart Cities – have opened up huge opportunities for the industry. The economy, he said, would stand to benefit immensely through higher productivity that the vast number of talented Indians will usher in.
He said that the government was committed to doing everything possible to make the environment conducive for industry and the consumer, the success of which will depend upon industry and government working together.
The Indian Express whole-time director and head, new media Anant Goenka pointed out that the importance of digital technology could be gleaned from the success stories of the young multi-billionaires who have used digital platforms innovatively. “The question that remains is how ‘Digital Bharat’ is achieved in a fair and sustainable way,” he said.
USIBC Digital Economy Industry Group chairman Joseph Alhadeff spoke of the need to achieve global standards in manufacturing and integration into the global supply chains. He also called for more enhanced cooperation amongst the stakeholders so that there was no duplication of effort.
FICCI president Jyotsna Suri, in her welcome address, said that it was encouraging that the Indian government is prioritizing technology as an enabler for the transformation and development of the country. “However, to reach the desired goals, it is extremely important to develop an environment, which nurtures Government-Industry dialogue and partnerships,” she emphasized and added, “We need to understand the nature of the opportunities being offered by the government programs like Digital India and Make in India and therefore FICCI has initiated the Digital Bharat series as a platform for having transformative exchanges and deliberations.”
FICCI communications and digital economy committee chairman Virat Bhatia, who moderated the inaugural session and delivered a vote of thanks, stated, “The digital revolution now stands at the cusp of a transformation, with the government having laid out its vision of a digitally enabled India over the last one year. The success of both “Digital India” and “Make in India”, will ride on the back of strong telecom ecosystem, digital infrastructure and industry’s link in the value chain. Some important issues on policy and regulatory front will need continued attention.”
EY global telecommunications leader Prashant Singhal presented the highlights and recommendations of the FICCI-EY report.
The key takeaways of the report are as follows:
·Recommends to bring handsets under provisions of “Goods of Special Importance” under the Central Excise Tax Act, 1956; thus, capping the maximum VAT levied by states at five per cent.
·Endorses a ten-year tax holiday on a block of 15 years on all profits and gains for manufacturing in the mobile phone industry.
·Endorses to incorporate the DoT guidelines on installation of mobile tower in the statutory framework and rules in line with the 53rd Parliamentary Committee report.
·Recommends to have minimum interest subsidy of five per cent on all fixed capital investments for entire Electronic System Design and Manufacturing sector in the lines of benefits given under Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme.
·Recommends to eliminate or reduce Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF) to one – three per cent.
Commenting on these findings, Singhal said, “A favourable and stable regulatory environment, coupled with increased transparency, is critical for attracting investments to the sector. An empathetic perspective of challenges faced by service providers is also important for restoring its vitality. Our report highlights that the country will speed ahead on the Digital Highway only with the provision of a clear spectrum roadmap, reducing USOF levy, rationalizing taxes and providing a policy push to boost manufacturing ecosystem. The resultant benefits transcend sectors. Moreover, telecom should be considered a critical infrastructure sector and its financing needs should be addressed accordingly.”
I&B Ministry
India turns up the heat on piracy, orders Telegram to axe 3,142 channels and blocks 800 websites
New legal teeth, nodal officers and notices to intermediaries signal that the government is done playing nice with copyright thieves
NEW DELHI: India’s war on film piracy just got significantly more aggressive. The government has ordered Telegram to remove 3,142 channels distributing pirated content, blocked access to around 800 websites through internet service providers, and put the full weight of freshly sharpened legislation behind the crackdown. The message from New Delhi is unambiguous: the free ride for copyright thieves is over.
Minister of state for information and broadcasting L. Murugan spelled out the legal architecture to the Lok Sabha on Wednesday. The Cinematograph (Amendment) Act, 2023, he said, now contains specific provisions designed to make piracy a genuinely painful proposition. Sections 6AA and 6AB prohibit unauthorised recording and transmission of films, with violations attracting a minimum of three months’ imprisonment and a fine of Rs 3 lakh. At the upper end, offenders face three years behind bars and fines of up to 5 per cent of a film’s audited gross production cost — a figure that, for a big-budget production, could run into crores.
The legislation also gives the government powers to act against intermediaries hosting infringing content, by notifying them under Section 79(3) of the Information Technology Act, 2000, and compelling takedowns and blocking actions. Under Section 79(3)(b), intermediaries are legally required to remove or disable access to unlawful content upon receiving government notice or court orders. The Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, add a further layer of obligation, requiring platforms to ensure their services are not used to host or distribute content that violates copyright or proprietary rights.
To put enforcement into practice, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has established a dedicated institutional mechanism, complete with nodal officers to receive complaints. Copyright holders, authorised representatives or individuals can report piracy through a prescribed format, after which the government issues notices to intermediaries to disable access to infringing links.
The most headline-grabbing action came on 11 March 2026, when Telegram was formally notified under Section 79(3)(b) of the IT Act and directed to remove and disable 3,142 channels found to be distributing unauthorised content belonging to OTT platforms, content owners and producers. The complaints that triggered the action came from OTT platforms including JioCinema and Amazon Prime Video, which alleged that copyrighted films, web series and other material were being shared on the platform on a massive scale. Telegram’s architecture, with its large file-sharing limits and capacity for user anonymity, has made it a favoured vehicle for exactly this kind of large-scale piracy.
The Telegram action sits within a broader pattern of escalating enforcement. Just days before the Lok Sabha statement, the ministry banned five OTT platforms for streaming obscene content: MoodXVIP, Koyal Playpro, Digi Movieplex, Feel and Jugnu. In July 2025, the Centre ordered the blocking of 25 OTT platforms accused of streaming obscene, vulgar or pornographic material, a list that included ALTT, ULLU, Big Shots App, Desiflix, Boomex, Navarasa Lite, Gulab App, Kangan App, Bull App, Jalva App, ShowHit, Wow Entertainment, Look Entertainment, Hitprime, Feneo, ShowX, Sol Talkies, Adda TV, HotX VIP, Hulchul App, MoodX, NeonX VIP, Fugi, Mojflix and Triflicks.
Rule 3(1)(b) of the IT (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, provides the regulatory hook for those actions, prohibiting platforms from hosting content that is obscene, pornographic, invasive of privacy, gender-harassing, racially or ethnically objectionable, or that promotes hatred and violence.
For an industry that loses billions of rupees annually to piracy, the direction of travel is welcome. The question, as always, is not whether the laws exist, but whether the enforcement machinery can keep pace with the ingenuity of those determined to circumvent it. Three thousand channels down, and the pirates are already busy opening three thousand more.
