Refarming of spectrum
Posted: November 24, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: gsm cell phone, radio frequency for, the broadband, the wave length, what are broadband services 1 CommentThe frequency bands are assigned to communications services that yield greater economic or social benefit
What is “frequency band”?
Frequency bands are groupings of radio frequencies that are used by mobile networks to communicate with mobile phones
Waveform can be represented as the sum of a range of frequencies. Waveforms can be relocated to separate frequency bands. The set of all frequencies is referred to as “the spectrum”. Cell phone companies have to pay big money to get access to part of the spectrum. For instance, AT&T has to bid on a slice of the spectrum with the FCC, for the “right” to transmit information within that band. The transmission of EM energy is greatly regulated. When AT&T is sold a slice of the spectrum, they can not transmit energy at any other band
The Bandwidth of a signal is the difference between the signals high and low frequencies. For instance, a signal transmitting between 40 and 50 MHz has a bandwidth of 10 MHz. This means that the energy of the signal is contained between 40 and 50 MHz (and the energy in any other frequency range is negligible).
The Union Cabinet approved the National Telecom Policy in May 2012 which says that spectrum will be refarmed. This is the official policy of the Government.
The 2G GSM mobile services in India are provided by the telecom operators utilizing the two spectrum bands 900 MHz band and 1800 MHz bands allotted to them
While the early entrants in the business (who were issued license before 2001) – Airtel, Vodafone, Idea, BSNL and MTNL were issued 2G spectrum at first in 900 MHz band and thereafter in 1800 MHz band and hence got spectrum in both these bands, the later entrants like Tata, Reliance in GSM 2G services business were allotted spectrum only in 1800 MHz band since the 900 MHz band spectrum was allotted fully to the earlier entrants and hence not available.
900 MHz band more efficient than 1800 MHz band
Because the 900 MHz band has lesser wavelength, it will travel more distance and the signals transimitted on 900 MHz band are more potent for indoor coverage. 900 MHz band is 30-40 per cent better in coverage compared to 1800 MHz.
Since the wave length is more in 1800 MHz band spectrum, its coverage is not as effective as 900 MHz band. Therefore more number of BTSs (Base Transmission Stations) are required for the same area for 1800 MHz band spectrum compared to 900 MHz band spectrum. Thus 900 MHz band spectrum is cost effective since less number of BTSs is required.
The 900 MHz band is superior to 1800 MHz band on another count. Since the 900 MHz band is in use worldwide for the last 20 years, technology developed for operating the services utilising that band has become standardised and more developed. Even 4G broadband services also can be provided on 900 MHz band spectrum with less cost equipment. But the existing license condition is preventing the provision of 4G services on 900 MHz band since as per the license condition only 2G GSM services are to be provided on this band. Once the license is renewed after the expiry of the present license or any new operator enters afresh with a new license and in case the Company with the renewed/new license has this 900 MHz band spectrum, it can provide 4G services also utilizing it.
Hence the Companies having 900 MHz band are demanding that they should be allowed to retain their 900 MHz band spectrum as it is on renewal of their license after the expiry of the present license period. They are ready to pay the market discovered price for this 900 MHz band spectrum for thir renewed license period. Market discovered price is the price found in the auction of the spectrum band. Airtel and Vodafone are having the 900 MHz band spectrum and their present license period will be over by 2014/15. They want that on the expiry of their license period, the 900 MHz band spectrum should not be taken away from them and they should be allowed to retain it for the next 20 years of their renewed license period starting with 2014/15. They are willing to pay the market price for it
But the Telecom Commission recently in its meeting held on 19-10-2012 has decided that on the expiry of their license period in 2014/15 for the telecom operators like Airtel and Vodafone, the following will happen to the 900 MHz band and 1800 MHz band spectrum held by them:
- 900 MHz band spectrum will entirely be taken away from the telecom operators and if they want to have it in their next license period starting with 2014/15, they have to get it by purchasing it by participating in the auction to be held for selling the 900 MHz band
- They can retain their existing 1800 MHz band spectrum fully without participating in the auction, by paying the market price for it
- If they are unable to get the 900 MHz band spectrum in the auction, then they will be allotted 1800 MHz band spectrum in the place of the 900 MHz band spectrum held by them earlier. They have to pay the market price for the 1800 MHz band spectrum
This process of taking away the 900 MHz band spectrum from the operators having it on expiry of their license period and reallotting it on the basis of auction and replacing the 900 MHz band spectrum with 1800 MHz band spectrum in case the operator is not able to get back the 900 MHz band spectrum, is named as “Spectrum Refarming”.
But the Airtel and Vodafone are saying that if they have to replace their 900 MHz band spectrum with 1800 MHz band spectrum on expiry of their present license period, they have to replace their entire network built up for the 900 MHz band spectrum with a new network for 1800 MHz band spectrum and it will cost around Rs 1,00,000 crore for them.
They are also arguing that in case they have to get 900 MHz band spectrum afresh for their renewed license period of 20 years starting with 2014/15, they have to pay around Rs 1,50,000 crore for it
They are saying both options are costly and it will lead to a huge increase in tariffs for the customers
This argument of Airtel, Vodafone etc is opposed by Tata, Reliance Com who are not having 900 MHz band spectrum. They are arguing that the Airtel and Vodafone are provided with the efficient 900 MHz band spectrum whereas they are deprived of the same and hence there is discrimination. They demand that there should be equality and level playing ground among all the players. Therefore thee decision of the Telecom Commission for taking away the entire 900 MHz band spectrum held by Airtel, Vodafone etc on expiry of their license period in 2014/15 and selling it in auction is correct since it gives equal opportunity to all to get the 900 MHz band spectrum by participating in the auction.
BSNL and MTNL are also having 900 MHz band spectrum. But their present license period is upto 2020 and 2017 respectively. Hence immediately there is no problem for them. But those who will get 900 MHz band spectrum afresh or on renewal of their present license on its expiry, which will happen in 2014/15, will be able to provide 4G services using the 900 MHz band spectrum. But BSNL and MTNL will not be able to provide 4G services inspite of having 900 MHz band spectrum since the present license condition prevents providing services other than 2G services on 900 MHz band.
The Airtel, Vodafone etc are lobbying against the decision of the Telecom Commission on spectrum refarming and mounting pressure on the Government with the name of COAI(Cellular Operators Association of India).
On the other hand the Tata and Reliance are lobbying in the name of AUSPI (Association of Unified Services Providers of India). They are supporting the Telecom Commission’s decision
Solution: a possible suggestion: Spectrum is a scare natural resource. There cannot be any real level playing ground in allotting the spectrum in view of the constantly changing technological upgradations since equality cannot be maintained in all respects in its allocation among the telecom operators. It will create serious struggles, corrupt practices, and preventing full usage of thee spectrum for the benefit of society. The only way for the full utilization for the benefit of society is to nationalize telecom services so that only the PSU operators are there with spectrum allotted to them free of cost by the Government, so that the services can be provided at less cost to the people.
UN-Habitat has launched the State of World’s Cities Report 2012/2013
Posted: November 5, 2012 Filed under: Urbanisation | Tags: cities development, cities development asia, cities development beall, cities development henderson, cities development index, cities development initiative, cities development initiative for asia, cities development initiative for asia (cdia), cities development initiative philippines, urbanisation and development, urbanisation in india 3 CommentsUN-Habitat has launched the State of World’s Cities Report 2012/2013
Titled ‘The Prosperity of Cities’
The report recommends that those engaged in development work need to explore a more inclusive notion of prosperity and development
According to the report there was an urgent need for a shift in attention around the world in favour of a more robust notion of development
“In this Report, UN-Habitat advocates for a new type of city – the city of the 21st century – that is a good people centred city
In order to measure present and future progress of cities towards the prosperity path, UN-Habitat introduces a new tool – the CITY PROSPERITY INDEX- together with a conceptual matrix, the WHEEL OF PROSPERITY, both of which are meant to assist decision makers to design clear policy interventions.
City Prosperity Index
UN-Habitat has worked out a new comprehensive measure — City Prosperity Index (CPI) — to gauge cities
The index is meant to measure present and future progress of cities towards the prosperity path
The index includes 5 dimensions of prosperity:
- Productivity
- Infrastructure
- Quality of life
- Equity
- Environmental sustainability
Index enables decision-makers to identify opportunities and potential areas along the path of prosperity
The UN has introduced the CPI together with a conceptual matrix, the Wheel of Prosperity. The Wheel of Prosperity:
- ensures the prevalence of public over any other kind of interest
- controls the direction and pace of city growth towards prosperity
In totality, according to the UN habitat, the city of the 21st century:
Reduces disaster risks and vulnerabilities for the poor and build resilience to adverse forces of nature.
Creates harmony between the five dimensions of prosperity and enhances the prospects for a better future.
Stimulates local job creation, promotes social diversity, maintains a sustainable environment and recognizes the importance of public spaces.
Comes with a change of pace, profile and urban functions and provides the social, political and economic conditions of prosperity.
INDIAN SITUATION
Mumbai and Delhi figure among 95 world cities identified by the United Nations as those moving towards prosperity, but the two Indian metropolis are just “half-way” to achieving it with the reasons being poor infrastructure and environment conditions among others
The report places Mumbai at the 52nd position and New Delhi at 58th among the world cities, though two Chinese cities – Shanghai and Beijing – figure much above. Two Indian cities come under the Group 4 and they are in the medium level (of prosperity).
Prosperity is not just the economic prosperity, but the kind of infrastructure and the quality of life in the city. Both the cities have been penalised for poor environment conditions, especially New Delhi.
The report also praises the IT revolution that Bangalore has been able to achieve and calls Hyderabad as the pharmaceutical capital of India
On ICTs criteria in Asian cities Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai feature mobile telephone connection rates of 138 per cent, 112 per cent, 102 per cent and 143 per cent respectively. The report also noted that cities in India are fast expanding at the cost of rural areas and pitched for a policy for use of land in cities.
The importance of the CPI
The importance of the CPI lies in its ability to show how and why one city outscores the other and the precise policy corrections it can highlight.
Though Indian cities do well in terms of productivity, they have serious environmental issues. Deteriorating air quality, inefficient management of waste, depletion of the ground water table and vanishing water bodies have compromised the advantages offered by Indian urban centres. Insensitive encroachment of open spaces, and depleted green cover have only added to the woes.
The second challenge that daunts Indian cities is the issue of equity. Dhaka has a better equity index than Delhi. This is because plans here have paid less attention to the marginalised, resulting in inadequate social housing, eviction of street vendors, and flawed land policies.
Achieving economic prosperity along with better quality of life and inclusive growth is imperative not just to climb the rank ladder, but to make our cities desirable places to live.
Storm and Stress
Posted: November 4, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: storms and hurricanes, tropical storm, what is a hurricane 4 CommentsA storm in the Atlantic is called a hurricane,in the Indian Ocean it is a cyclone,while around the Philippines and the Pacific Ocean it is known as a typhoon
While these three form over water,tornadoes (or twisters) form over land and are smaller in size and intensity.Though similar in many ways,hurricanes,cyclones and typhoons are measured on different scales.
For hurricanes there is the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale.Depending upon wind speed,hurricanes are classified under Categories 1-5.For a storm to be called a Category 1 hurricane it has to have wind speeds ranging 119-153 kmph;252 kmph and above are slotted under Category 5.Indias Regional Specialised Meteorological Centres classification of cyclone ranges from depression (51 kmph) to super cyclones (222 kmph).
Until 1978,storms were only given womens names! But then US weathermen decided to become politically correct and so now we have mens names too attached to hurricanes.
Its Sandy season now but watch out for Tony,Valerie and William.And next year the hurricane season will start with Andrea,Barry and Chantal.In days gone by,hurricanes were named after saints.Then latitude and longitude positions were used and during World War II the US military named them after their wives and girl friends.
Now it is the job of the World Meteorological Organization,based in Geneva,to get out an alphabetical list of names at its annual meeting.The lists are rotated every six years.Some names from the previous years are retired,if they have been devastating.
Why Internet Governance must be Democratised ?
Posted: October 6, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: become and IT, governance in it, security and internet, which rights are human rights Leave a commentWhat started off as a global public resource is on its way to becoming a set of monopoly private enclosures, and a means for entrenching dominant power
Internet structures economic, cultural, political and cultural systems
We are also moving away from a browser-centric architecture of the “open” Internet to an applications-driven mobile Internet, that is even more closed and ruled by proprietary spaces (like App Store and Android Market)
What started off as a global public resource is well on its way to becoming a set of monopoly private enclosures, and a means for entrenching dominant power
At this stage, it is crucial to actively defend and promote the Internet’s immense potential as a democratic and egalitarian force, including through appropriate principles and policies at the global level
Who governs the Internet
It is a myth that “the Internet is not governed by anyone.”
The architecture of the Internet is being actively shaped today by the most powerful forces, both economic and political.
Western companies and governments increasingly have monopoly control over most of the Internet. Together, these two forces, in increasing conjunction, are determining the techo-social structure of a new unipolar world. This needs to be changed with globally democratic forms of governance of the Internet.
Apart from the direct application of U.S. law and whims (think WikiLeaks) over the global Internet, and Internet-based social activity (increasingly a large part of our social existence), default global law is also being written by the clubs of powerful countries that routinely draft Internet policies and policy frameworks today.
The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the Council of Europe are two active sites of such policy making, covering areas like cyber-security, Internet intermediary liability, search engines, social networking sites, etc
They strongly resist any U.N.-based initiative for development of global Internet principles and policies
This leads to undermine U.N./multi-lateral frameworks in other global governance arenas
For instance: trying to keep global financial systems out of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development’s (UNCTAD) purview at the recent Doha UNCTAD meeting, and bringing in the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) as a new instrument of extra-territorial Internet Protocol (IP) enforcement by the OECD, bypassing World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO).
The mandate of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) for building a globally democratic space for developing Internet related global policies and removing Digital divide is quite clear
Internet must be governed democratically, with the equal involvement of all people, groups and countries. Its governance systems must be open, transparent and inclusive, with civil society given adequate avenues of meaningful substantive participation.
On the technical governance side, the oversight of the Internet’s critical technical and logical infrastructure, at present with the Western government, should be transferred to an appropriate, democratic and participative, multilateral body
The Internet should be governed on the principles of human liberty, equality and fraternity
It should be based on the accepted principle of the indivisibility of human rights; civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, and also people’s collective right to development.
A rights-based agenda should be developed as an alternative to the current neo-liberal model driving the development of the Internet, and the evolution of an information society
India has sought the creation of a U.N. Committee on Internet-Related Policies (CIRP) in order to democratise global Internet governance
Global Internet governance has two components
- Technical Governance which includes Internet resources like domain names/internet names/address system and root servers
- Policies which include social, economic and political issues
Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), under contract with the U.S. Department of Commerce. ICANN, as a U.S. non-profit body, is subject to U.S. laws in every possible way. It controls name spaces. To give a simple illustration, some time back ICANN allowed the .xxx domain space over the objections of most governments. However, now some U.S. companies have taken ICANN to court alleging anti-competition practices in allowing the .xxx domain. This simple illustration makes a mockery of ICANN’s claim to be an independent globally accountable governance system.
With increased securitisation of the Internet, the single point control issue has become even more severe for developing countries.
The other area of global governance relates to wider public policy issues like the role and responsibilities of Internet intermediaries (like search engines and social networking sites), e-commerce, cross-border data flows, intellectual property and access to knowledge, trade and tax, online media, cultural diversity, privacy, security, human rights, etc.
At present, it is either U.S. law which applies globally by default as most monopoly Internet companies are U.S.-based, or the policy frameworks are developed by rich country clubs like the OECD.
There is no reason why such policy principles and guidelines should not be developed by all countries sitting together in the first place, which is what is proposed the U.N. Committee for Internet-Related Policies (CIRP) will do.
Developed countries are using the power of their monopoly Internet companies and other kinds of strategic advantages to shape the Internet as per their narrow interests and at the same time, the North has managed to keep developing countries away from the seats of governance of the Internet
For this purpose, they use many different strategies. To many developing countries, they sell the proposition that poorer countries should focus on the immense developmental potential of the Internet, rather than the its global governance. North has somewhat successfully been able to sell an image of itself as the protector of freedoms and liberties on the Internet, chiefly freedom of expression, and that of developing countries as anti-democratic and retrograde, thus arguing that the latter should not be allowed anywhere near the levers of Internet governance.
Developing countries urgently need a global forum that could work towards democratising the Internet’s governance, and developing principles and policies for shaping the Internet as a democratic and egalitarian force.
National Hybrid/ Electricity Mobility Mission
Posted: October 5, 2012 Filed under: Environment | Tags: about hybrid mobility, for hybrid, hybrid 2012, mobility scooter 52 Comments
National Electric Mobility Mission Plan 2020, which is aimed at promoting electric and hybrid vehicles
India’s National Council for Electric Mobility (NCEM) has adopted the National Electric Mobility Mission Plan 2020 (NEMMP 2020), which is the mission document for National Mission for Electric Mobility (NMEM)
National Security and Center-State Politics
Posted: October 5, 2012 Filed under: Polity | Tags: about, about the police, arrest and search, center of delhi, homeland security, law for police, the constitution, what is constitution 2 CommentsAll mature democracies put up a common front on national security issues, for these are issues that threaten the way of life that a nation state has accepted for itself.
India faces two such existential threats, one from jihadists inspired by Pakistan, and the other from Maoists. Sikh terrorism was brutally put down by the State, but one hears of attempts to revive the movement in the Punjab, with the backing of the Inter-Services Intelligence.
In the United States, each citizen’s life is precious. In India, we go from one crisis to another, reducing the lives of our citizens to mere statistics.
Maoist insurgency is the single biggest threat to India’s security, yet we do not have a clear and coherent policy for dealing with this threat. Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Orissa, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh are the States affected by Maoist terror.
The Central government was keen to supplement the efforts of the State governments in fighting the Maoists, and simultaneously going in for integrated development in areas vacated by the Maoists. But it was obvious that all political parties did not agree with the strategy — some still believed they could talk to Maoists and bring them round!
Police and law and order figure as item numbers 1 and 2 in List II of the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution — meaning they are within the exclusive preserve of the States. Once a State decides to go its own way in tackling a problem like that of the Maoists, there is little that the Central government can do.
No doubt police is a State subject. But in the case of Maoists, they move around freely through the jungles and remote villages along the borders of multiple states. While it is accepted that operational success against the Maoists will depend on the quality of intelligence back up that the State has, as amply proved in the case of Andhra Pradesh, this can happen in the nine affected States only when they have a common strategy, build trust in one another and the Central agencies, and back up one another against the Maoists. It should not be forgotten that the goal of Maoists is to overthrow the democratically elected government through an armed struggle. They have used talks to regroup and strengthen themselves, each time. In this, they are the true disciples of the LTTE, as much as they are in the art of making improvised explosive devices, which they learnt from the Tigers in the late 1980s.
The Mumbai carnage by the LeT in November 2008, or 26/11 as it is known, is considered world-wide as the most violent terrorist onslaught after 9/11 and, in that sense, a game changer. This was a good occasion for the nation to make constitutional adjustments to enable an appropriately strong response to terrorist attacks. Parliament hurriedly passed the amended Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and the National Investigation Agency Act. The latter was to focus on investigations of terrorism related cases only. Though the government claimed that the NIA could take over any terrorist case registered in any State after receiving a directive from the Ministry of Home Affairs, the fact remains that since its inception, the NIA was given only one case that took place in Delhi last year, though there have been several crucial blasts in Mumbai, Pune and Delhi. No attempt was made to mobilise public, and across the board political opinion before framing the NIA Act.
Jihadists plan centrally, and operate by choosing the place and time of attack. Recent investigations show that some groups have morphed into independent cells and go on their own attacks. If the line of investigation being pursued by the Delhi police holds good, and it is proved that Iranians were involved in the recent attack on the Israeli diplomat, it means a whole new dimension of the jihadist threat.
Multi Agency Centre which was being operated by the Intelligence Bureau. The aim was to give NCTC a clearly defined role in preventing terrorist attacks, and if an attack took place, of investigating them holistically.
But what was finally approved was a truncated version of the original, keeping the NCTC within the Intelligence Bureau, and giving it powers under the UAPA for arrest, searches and seizure. It is this provision that has disturbed the States.
They have not been given powers to register and investigate cases, as they have been in the case of the NIA.
The NIA will be answerable to the courts for its actions on searches, arrests and seizures. What about the NCTC? Will it get cases registered by the local police after the arrests, searches and seizures? What if the local police refuse to cooperate? Will the NCTC produce their secret records in courts? The NCTC could very well have functioned within the IB, and searches, arrests and seizures could have been organised through the NIA. Was this option not considered because of ‘turf’?
National security is too serious a challenge to be left at the mercy of political and bureaucratic bickering.
Morphine
Posted: October 3, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: cancer, opium in india, opium use, pain in cancer, people dead of cancer, production of opium in india, use of morphine 9 Comments
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