Telecom a force-multiplier for all sectors: COAI DG

New Delhi: The telecom sector is set to be a force-multiplier for other sectors, and the government needs to view it as an essential service and enabler for industries, not as the lucrative sector for attracting revenues, industry body COAI said on Wednesday.

Speaking at a virtual event organised by industry think-tank Broadband India Forum, Cellular Operators’ Association of India (COAI) Director General SP Kochhar said the advent of 5G means that artificial intelligence, augmented reality, virtual reality, robotics and other futuristic technologies will “grow and partake telecom and vice versa”.

“This sector is going to empower as a force multiplier, and all other sectors will build on this foundation of telecom,” Kochhar said.

In this context, telecom should be viewed as a “different piece”, given that it is now a horizontal with transformative impact across sectors, he pointed out.

At this point, the government views telecom as a lucrative sector for attracting revenue and taxes. And that may no longer be the way they have to look at the telecom because of its changing nature, Kochhar said.

“Revenue they get from telecom, if we consider that as a primary revenue source and enhancement of revenue that they get from industries riding on telecom, I call that as secondary revenue…that secondary revenue will far surpass what they could have got from primary revenue.

Newer technologies and 5G will change the way people work, placing the spotlight on reskilling and retraining.

“There is a going to be a major shift in the availability of jobs, the current jobs as we know them may vanish, newer jobs doubling on cognitive domain are going to come up and therefore there will be a requirement of reskilling and re-equipping ourselves,” he said.