The Budget 2020 has completely ignored the importance of the telecommunications sector.
With the arrival of 2020, we’re at the dawn of a new decade, which will be one of the most pivotal for the Indian economy. It is the decade during which several of the important components of the digital infrastructure built over the preceding years will be leveraged and blended with a promising set of emerging technologies that have been deliberated over extensively.
If we play our cards well, India could become the first digitally led superpower of the world. Digital technologies are not just a fashion statement for India. They are what will enable uniform and balanced development of the subcontinent, which is very diverse in both its socio-economic and cultural profiles. India’s infrastructure requirements are just massive. At the same time, the country has to keep up with the latest developments across sectors and domains.
The conventional strategy of building infrastructure and promoting development is not going to work anymore. It is going to be ever more challenging to develop the basic infrastructure across the country as well as keep pace with new and emerging developments. If both the threads are not pulled together, we are going to increasingly see a socio-economic divide between the metros of the country and the other smaller cities and towns. This will keep on increasing the infrastructural burden on a few cities and the dream of decentralised growth and development may never be realised.
There is no further need to debate the role of digital technologies in the holistic development of India. It is proven that without leveraging digital infrastructure, a decentralised developed India may never be realised.
The Budget 2020 is themed around ‘Ease of Living’ and branches out into the three key pillars of ‘Aspirational India’, ‘Economic Development’ and ‘Caring Society’. If we analyse each of these pillars and their constituents, we can conclude that without leveraging our digital infrastructure and the emerging technology stack, achieving our goals for the three pillars, holistically, for entire India is impossible.
For instance, agriculture, irrigation and rural development cannot happen without technology interventions, which need to be intelligent, and hence connected. Similarly, the ‘new economy’ is all about being digital and a shared economy, which has to be built over digital technologies. Likewise, only an Internet enabled infrastructure can create more tourism opportunities. These are just some random examples to illustrate the point that every element identified within these three pillars cannot happen without a healthy digital ecosystem. Not just that, effective governance and an all-inclusive financial sector can only be achieved through digital interventions.
All of the above observations indicate that it’s impossible to achieve the central theme of Budget 2020, which is ‘Ease of Living’, without a sustainable, evolving and rewarding digital ecosystem. Let us delve deep into what being digital is all about and identify its core elements. It would not be wrong to say that telecommunications contributes more than 50 per cent of the value to digital infra, with electronics and IT being the other key elements.
In spite of being critical to a digital world, leaving telecommunications entirely out of the purview of any special budgetary intervention will be catastrophic. Especially at a juncture when we all know about the distressed state of the sector. No doubt, the current situation of the telecom sector is a result of a series of missteps in the past, which could have been avoided. But we cannot punish the industry and make its future bleak, especially when the role it plays is far greater than just GDP contribution.
How are we going to run the economy without healthy telecommunications? Let’s look at some of the aspects of the Budget that have a direct bearing on the state of affairs in telecommunications.
- First and foremost, “GST, the most historic structural reform,” as stated by the finance minister in her speech, is feasible only because of the robust connectivity offered by telecommunications. So is the case with other revenue collection systems of the government. Going forward, such reliance on digital infrastructure is only going to increase. How can we then think of these paradigm shifts without investing in telecommunications?
- A new scheme was announced for electronics manufacturing, particularly mobile phones. If our telecommunications industry keeps on weakening, how are we going to increase the consumption of such devices? In the past ten years or so, we have reached over 500 million smartphone users. Theoretically, we have room for another 500 million users. How will this happen without a growing and evolving telecommunications infrastructure?
- BharatNet has been an anchor project in the digital enablement of India. The Budget allocated another ₹ 60 billion for its expansion to cover more villages. How can this infrastructure be leveraged without healthy telecommunications that could extend affordable and reliable connectivity to the remotest places of India, bringing in digital inclusivity?
- India needs a higher data centre density, more than perhaps tower densification, with the changing technology. As networks and other technologies get more and more virtualised, there will be an exponential growth in the demand for data centres. The announcement of data centre parks across India is a step in the right direction. How will they be leveraged without equally robust telecommunications? When we acknowledge that data is the new oil, then we have to realise that data centres are the new petrol pumps or gas stations. We will need that widespread connectivity to port traffic from and to these data centres.
- Last, the startup wave was possible because of an enabling telecommunications sector. Any individual can think of a startup and potentially earn in foreign exchange from the remotest part of the country only because of an enabling telecommunications infrastructure. As rightly said by Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon and one of the most successful digital entrepreneurs in the world, digital technologies enabled two kids to bootstrap a billion dollar company from their small rooms at home. That’s the power of connectivity!
Personally, I am against any sops. Everything should be left to stand up, sustain and grow on its own. But, yes, governments have to create an environment that is conducive to let things grow. This is the time for telecommunications to be given prominence and priority in the scheme of things. Unfortunately, Budget 2020 does not recognise the sector’s critical importance, and does not give it the due support to take off for the next era when everything is going to be connected digitally. Without this, ease of living will be the privilege of just a few and not the right of every citizen. That would be a great failure for any government!
