Net Neutrality – Key Developments In India

Net Neutrality can be broadly described as principle that all electronic communications passing through a network should be treated equally¹. The term was coined by a Columbia University professor Tim Wu in 2003 and its definition has been debated across the globe for more than a decade now. Net Neutrality is necessary for development of the Internet. The United States and European Union have firmed up their positions and models for implementing and ensuring free Internet. India too is not far behind although it has dived into this debate much later. Both Department of Telecom (DoT) and Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) have been working on various aspects of net neutrality since 2015. In this context it will be useful to study the developments that have taken place in India so far.