Why are Mumbai's new airport and metro signal-starved?

A high-stakes war is currently raging between infrastructure developers and telecom operators, with the passenger caught in the dead zone.

Mint explains the ongoing connectivity issue, why the telecom and infrastructure operators are refusing to budge, what the rules say, and how the government is responding.

Why are mobile networks down at Mumbai’s new airport and metro?

On 25 December, when the Adani group-owned Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA) began commercial operations, travellers complained about the lack of cellular connectivity there. This meant there were no network signals from India’s private telecom service providers Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea. The reason? There was no connectivity agreement for the provision of telecom connectivity between the airport and telecom operators. A similar issue has played out at the Mumbai Metro Aqua line, where passengers are facing connectivity issues for the last three months and the two sides have not been able to agree on commercial terms for enabling mobile connectivity.

Why are the connectivity agreements stuck?

Telecom operators have been quoted charges that they think are “exorbitantly" high. The operators believe that since they are the licenced entity and hold the spectrum, they are legally compliant to offer connectivity at these places as per the right of way (RoW) rules under the Telecom Act. They have objected to the appointment of third-party service providers by the airport and metro authorities to lay the telecom infrastructure and become a gatekeeper for all connectivity permissions.

When the Mumbai Metro Aqua line was starting operations, the Mumbai Metro Rail Corp (MMRC) looped in a Saudi Arabia-based digital infrastructure provider ACES to provide in-building solutions. MMRC is a joint venture between the central government and the Maharashtra government. As per the plan, ACES would be a neutral host through which telecom operators would provide connectivity to Mumbai’s underground metro stations. In the case of Navi Mumbai airport, the operator has itself deployed the in-building solutions.

Third-party solutions providers typically try to recover their investments in their target span of time and telecom operators are at their mercy to provide connectivity, that too at a higher cost.

So, what are the fees being sought?

Telecom operators say the Navi Mumbai airport has sought about ₹92 lakh per month per operator, totalling nearly ₹44.16 crore per annum for four operators. The operators argue these charges are grossly disproportionate and significantly exceed the capex required to deploy an independent in-building solution (IBS) network.

In fact, these operators say they can deploy the solutions at one-fourth of the cost quoted by the third-party service providers to the airport and metro operators.

A few months ago, the Navi Mumbai airport operator proposed that telecom service providers (TSPs) be charged for IBS infrastructure at rates aligned with those applicable at the Mumbai International Airport Ltd (MIAL). This would mean that the charges for the telecom operators would be reduced by over 50% to about ₹40 lakh a month.

The operators did not accept the proposal, saying the charges were not reasonable in view of the footfall at the airport. At some other major airports, such as in Delhi, they pay about ₹10-12 lakh.

In a similar situation, on the issue of connectivity in the Dwarka Expressway tunnels, the department of telecommunications (DoT) had in August last year asked the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to arrange telecom connectivity without seeking any fee or entry charges for the use of telecom infrastructure inside tunnels.

What is the stance of Navi Mumbai Airport?

It said since airports are highly-sensitive zones, frequent servicing, maintenance and upkeep of the network are necessary. This is best managed by the airport operator with the relevant security clearance from BCAS (Bureau of Civil Aviation Security) and other security agencies. The turnaround time for any third party to address any concerns with the network will be substantially more, leading to delays and passenger inconvenience, NMIA said, adding that it has regularly communicated and discussed the matter with telcos and offered IBS services at charges in line with industry standards. NMIA is currently providing free Wi-Fi services to passengers.

Commuters can, however, access state-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) network at the airport. BSNL has partnered with the NMIA at no cost, according to private telecom operators.

What are the RoW rules and will the govt intervene?

Regulations do not explicitly name airports or metro systems, but they lay down broad principles that are meant to ensure uninterrupted mobile connectivity in public-use infrastructure.

Under the Telecommunications Act, 2023 and the Telecom Right of Way (RoW) Rules, licensed telecom service providers are entitled to seek right of way from public entities that own, control or manage public property for deploying telecom infrastructure. The rules require such access to be granted on reasonable, transparent and non-discriminatory terms, with charges limited to administrative or restoration costs, and not as a source of commercial revenue.

While this obligation clearly applies to government-run infrastructure such as airports operated by the Airports Authority of India or metro rails run by public corporations, the applicability of law on public-private partnerships and privately-operated airports is subject to notification by the government.

Under the definition of ‘public entity’ under the Telecom Act, any non-government entity having ownership, control or management of any public facility or class of public facilities, as may be notified by the government, will be covered under the ambit of RoW.

These operators perform public functions and manage facilities used by the general public, but they are not expressly defined as “public entities" under the RoW framework. Therefore, commercial terms, including charges, must be mutually agreed.

The DoT has been holding regular meetings with telcos and the metro and airport operators to clear the jam.