Draft Right of Way (RoW) guidelines by DoT
Recently, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has released the draft Right of Way (RoW) guidelines.
The “Right of Way” guidelines provide a framework for granting permission and settling disputes with respect to the establishment and maintenance of telecommunications infrastructure.
Objectives of the guidelines:
- Bringing uniformity in the procedures relating to ‘Right of Way’ across states.
- Encouraging setting up of telecom infrastructure before starting the use of 15G technology on a pan-India basis.
The key provisions of the guidelines-
- They provide methodologies for the calculation of the right-of-way area, and the installation of poles for locating small cells.
- A small cell is a cellular base station. It serves a small area ranging from 10 meters to a few hundred meters.
- Provision has been made to waive off application fee, and compensation for using street furniture (such as electric poles, traffic lights etc.) installed on immovable property of a local or government authority.
- It has also been proposed to waive off duty on installation of telecom infrastructure on central government buildings and structures.
- Provision has been made for mandatory installation of telecom infrastructure within residential projects and premises. For this, changes will be made in the National Building Code and Model Building Bye-laws.
- Establishment of an online RoW portal, and deemed approval has also been proposed.
What is Right of Way (RoW)?
- Right of way is a legal right. It allows Telecom Service Providers (TSPs) to apply online, and then provide service.
- The Indian Telegraph RoW Rules, 2016 regulate underground infrastructure (optical fiber) and above ground infrastructure (mobile towers).
Source – The Hindu
