Civil Aviation Secretary RN Choubey on Wednesday said that fliers may soon be allowed to make calls and be allowed paid Wi-Fi on flights in Indian airspace, reported PTI. A decision regarding this is likely to be announced in the next 10 days.
Choubey said that the Department of Telecommunications secretary has briefed him about the matter and added, “There is fairly a good chance that in 10 days permission will be given to operate Wi-Fi in the Indian airspace.” According to Choubey, the proposal will not need the Cabinet’s approval.
Passengers travelling by air are currently not allowed to use mobile phones and internet when they are in the Indian airspace because of security concerns. He said the main issue was about the “ability to track voice and data”. According to NDTV, security agencies do not have the technology to monitor data transmission over Indian airspace and the government is now hoping to resolve that.
Choubey said the cost of the new facilities will be decided by the airlines and that the government will not put a cap on it. According toLivemint, Indian carriers have maintained that offering such a facility will pinch their pockets. Indigo President Aditya Ghosh told NDTV that they were not in a position to comment right now. He said, “It is too early for us to comment. Let us see what the policy is.”
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