Benchmarking

Abstract

The role of infrastructure in economic development can hardly be over emphasized. The advanced economies of the US, of Europe and of Japan, all developed their infrastructure first. In response to the business needs of faster, cheaper, and more varied modes of communication, the telecommunication sector in many countries has been undergoing rapid technological and structural changes over the past few years. Since the mid 80s, the telecommunication sector in India, too, has undergone major transformations. Private participation in the manufacture of end user equipment and services, reorganization of the monolithic Department of Telecommunication, and raising finances from public for investment in the state owned factories and organizations have been some of the policy initiatives of the government. In a scenario where the features of the Indian telecom sector such as under investment, amalgamation of regulatory and operational functions, ill-defined sector policies, and lack of financial and administrative autonomy are common to many other developing countries, the consequences of sectoral changes have implications both for decision makers at the national level as well as in other developing countries. This article attempts to review the practices for bridging the gap between current performance levels and the projected potential of Indian telecom sector at the international standard. This is evident by the empirical data tested which is collected by the different sources and then complied at one level to reach out at some conclusions.