
Telecom has a 'critical sector’ tag, but no escape from fuel curbs for ops
Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.Amid diesel supply constraints triggered by the ongoing West Asia war, the government’s review of telecom operators and tower firms’ complaints has laid bare a crucial gap: the sector’s “critical infrastructure” tag is not ensuring priority fuel access on the ground. This threatens network continuity, especially in areas reliant on diesel-fuelled power backups, putting essential services—from hospitals to law enforcement—at risk of disruption.Despite its formal classification under national critical frameworks, telecom infrastructure continues to face uneven state-level curbs on diesel sales and movement.
With operators flagging rising outages and seeking urgent intervention, the issue underscores how last-mile implementation gaps can undermine a sector that underpins everyday connectivity and emergency response.Critical infrastructure—that includes other sectors such as energy and power, transport, financial services—typically refers to systems and assets essential for the functioning of the economy and society, where disruptions can have a significant impact on public services and safety.With the US-Iran war, going on for the past one-and-a-half months, hurting energy supplies, telecom players sought government's intervention to resolve issues related to priority access to fuel and power. Last month, operators and tower companies approached the government seeking priority electricity supply for mobile tower sites and a continued liquified petroleum gas (LPG) supply in the wake of some constraints imposed by oil marketing companies.On 30 March, tower companies—represented by the Digital Infrastructure Providers Association (DIPA)—again complained about being denied sale of diesel in
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