access to Internet to all citizens. The Minister made this statement as members from different political parties voiced their concern on this matter.
Members from all parties voiced their concerns on the matter of Net Neutrality. The members compared net neutrality to supply of electricity and water in a house on which separate tariff cannot be put based on the use of electronic gadgets or the location of water taps.
Telecom minister reiterated the government’s commitment to the core principles of net neutrality.
“It is imperative that we not only preserve but also foster non-discriminatory Internet ecoystem, wherein telecom service providers, content and application providers, industries, entrepreneurs and above all the citizens of the country have a stake,” Prasad said defining net neutrality in the works of Professor Tim Wu, who coined this word.
He said the government agrees with the view point that blocking and deliberate slowing down / speeding up of lawful content on Internet should not be allowed and customers should have unrestricted access to all lawful content on Internet.
“There would be instances, such as traffic management, national security, integrity of network, investment in infrastructure etc, where the implications of net neutrlity would need detailed expert examination. This is what governments and regulators all over the world are grappling with,” he said, adding that “very few countries have specific legislation for enforcement of net neutrality provisions.”
