Mumbai Metro's telecom model illegal, anti-consumer: Telcos

The mobile infrastructure model adopted by the Mumbai Metro is illegal and anti-consumer, a lobby grouping of telcos said on Monday. The Cellular Operators' Association of India ( COAI), which represents Bharti Airtel, Reliance Jio and Vodafone Idea, has opposed the "illegal and anti-consumer model" adopted by Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation ( MMRC) for provisioning telecom infrastructure on Metro Line 3 running in the Colaba-Bandra-Aarey corridor.

In a statement, the COAI said the MMRC's decision to award telecom infrastructure deployment to a third-party IP-I vendor, in violation of existing regulations, is at the core of its concerns.

It said IP-I providers are prohibited from deploying active infrastructure and the move is a breach of Telecommunication Act, 2023, and also sidelines licensed Telecom Service Providers (TSPs) who are legally authorised and technically equipped to independently deploy mobile networks, the COAI said.

Pointing out that TSPs have deployed such networks in other places like New Delhi, the statement said all three TSPs had jointly proposed to install a common In-Building Solution (IBS) network across the metro corridor at their own cost without any financial burden on MMRC.

However, the MMRC arbitrarily rejected their request for right of way permissions, citing the selection of a vendor through its internal tender process.

"COAI urges MMRC to immediately reconsider its current stance and uphold the principles of fair access, consumer convenience and lawful telecom infrastructure deployment," the statement said.

At present, a part of the largely underground metro line is operational between Bandra BKC and Aarey, and the line is set to be extended up to Worli soon.