Senior bureaucrat P D Vaghela was on Monday appointed as chairman of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), according to a Personnel Ministry order. Vaghela, a 1986-batch IAS officer of Gujarat cadre, is currently Secretary, Department of Pharmaceuticals. He has been appointed as the TRAI chief for three years or till he attains the age of 65, the order said.
Vaghela was due to retire on Wednesday. He will succeed R S Sharma, who completes his tenure on Wednesday.
Sharma was in 2015 appointed as the TRAI chairman for three years. In August 2018, his term was extended till September 30, 2020, making him the first TRAI chairman whose term was extended to a period of five years.
Sharma will be retiring after the government fought the Adjusted Gross Revenue battle in the Supreme Court against telecom players Vodafone Idea, Bharti Airtel, Tata Teleservices, among others. After a long-drawn court battle, the SC ruled last month that telcos will have to pay their AGR dues staggered over 10 years.
The Cellular Operators Association of India, the industry body for mobile service providers, internet service providers, etc in India welcomed the new chairman, and said that it looks forward to the support of the regulator in creating a more stable regulatory environment in India
“We heartily welcome Dr. P. D Vaghela as the new TRAI, Chairman and look forward to working with him for taking forward the Telecom Industry’s critical role in nation-building. The industry is keenly looking for the leadership and support of the regulator and government for creating a more stable regulatory environment which is essential for further growth of the Digital Services sector. This is essential to enable the realisation and timely achievement of the Government’s targets specified in the NDCP 2018,” Lt Gen Dr. SP Kochhar, DG, COAI said in a statement.