From the 1st of April 2017, the centre has decided to locally test the telecom gear that has been imported. By the government, the quality control agency which will be controlled which will do Standardisation Testing & Quality Certification (STQC) in its laboratories and will screen mobile network elements, feature phones, and smartphones that have been imported. For national security purposes, this will be done. Phase by phase, the screening will be done. Vulnerable equipment will be checked first.
This imported equipment will be divided into many categories. The most significant are the networks that are in core network systems, mobile switching centres, base stations, transmission devices, network management & billing systems. In the supply chain or mobile networks, this screening doesn’t create any problems or delays and this is the first objective to make sure.
So to work in the local screening of imported network gear, DoT may ask private sector companies with latest labs. Every year, as this will be a very complex activity with India buying $9 billion of telecom equipment and devices, there is also a plan to develop a complete screening and testing system with facilities of word class level.
As the funding has not been decided by the government, private companies have not shown much interest in this. At least a huge sum of Rs 1400 crore would require for this setting up, as per Industry experts. Because of the absence of facilities, from last three and half years, the local screening has been postponed continuously. By the authorised agency, the mandate of using the network devices that were screened and certified was put on 1st April 2013.
With this double screening policy of India, the trade bodies from Europe and the US do not agree as they think it will delay the supply chain and increase the costs.
