New Delhi: The deadline for mandatory testing and certification of mobile phones and telecom equipment has once again been extended, to August 1 this year.
In a circular issued yesterday, Telecom Engineering Centre (TEC), the technical arm of Department of Telecom (DoT) said certification of all telecom types of equipment under mandatory testing and certification of telecom equipment (MCTE), shall be mandatory with effect from August 1, 2019.
It is now almost seven years when the DoT has first issued the order for MCTE. It had had in 2012 for the first time fixed April 1, 2013, as the deadline for mandatory testing and certification of telecom equipment and has deferred it many times since then for reasons – know body wants to discuss in the DoT now.
According to an order issued last year, TEC said some of the equipment like wi-fi access points, satellite equipment, telephone instruments, and others, can be sold only after testing and obtaining the certificate from authorised agencies from January 1, 2019.
Moreover, April 1, 2019, was fixed as the deadline for certification of mobile base stations, routers, internet of things devices and other network gears.
To allay fears of cyber espionage, DoT in 2011 had amended telecom licence rules which made telecom operators install only those equipment in their network that is safe and certified by international reputed agencies until March 31, 2013.
According to the industry body, The Mobile Association (TMA), the extension will give enough time to the mobile brands to address the challenges regarding adequate testing infrastructure, completion of the TEC portal, and finalisation of the criteria for series of guidelines of mobile phones.
TMA President Ms Bhawna Kumari says the extension of the deadline is a favourable step towards ensuring a smooth transition to MCTE regime by mobile phones manufacturers.
