Mobile users got a boost from this year's Budget with the removal of cellular subscribers from one-of-six criteria for filing income-tax returns.
"Subscribers to a cellular phone will no longer be required to file their return if their income is below the maximum amount not chargeable to tax", Finance Minister P Chidamabarm said in his Budget proposals.
Users of cellular phones were obliged to furnish a return of their income as it was perceived as a premium service and the move may push up usage of mobile phones.
Besides mobile phones, the Budget 2005-06 has also taken note of the tele-density in the country currently at 8.75 per cent and has expressed concern at the low rural tele-density.
The budgetary allocation for Univesal Service Obligation of the government to provide telephone connectivity in remote and rural areas, however, remains flat at Rs 1200 crore (Rs 12 billion) in 2005-06, the same as last fiscal.
"So far the government has released Rs 1700 crore (Rs 17 billion) to the Universal Service Obligation fund which has been fully utilised. A provision of Rs 1200 crore has been made for 2005-06. 1687 sub-divisions will get support under the USO Fund for rural household telephones," the finance minister said.
USO Fund had released Rs 200 crore (Rs 2 billion) in Rs 2003-04 and Rs 300 crore (Rs 3 billion) in 2002-03 for telephone connectivity in rural areas.
As many as 5.2 lakh village public telephones have been installed so far and BSNL has undertaken to provide VPTs in the next three years to the remaining 66,822 villages.
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