The Department of Telecom has started work on a strategic plan to steer the telecom sector's growth into the next phase in terms of both services and manufacturing over the next five years.

"The government has decided to prepare a strategic plan for the DoT for the next five years. The plan will include key areas like various licensing issues, effective and user-friendly security systems, strategies for increasing broadband penetration, including rural areas, vacation of spectrum for commercial and wireless services and its efficient management," a DoT note said.

Issues like using the USO Fund for rural telephony promotion, telecom equipment manufacturing and convergence of telecom, IT and broadcasting also figure in the plan.

A DoT official said much has changed since the Telecom Policy of 1999, which had ushered in the second phase of telecom reforms in India. Many new operators have entered the market and new security issues have come up, among other developments in the Indian telecom scenario.

The country now has a total telecom subscriber base of 612.28 million (according to TRAI's March figures), out of which the wireless subscriber base stands at 584.32 million.

The broadband user level is currently at a much lower level of 8.75 million against the DoT's target of 20 million by the end of this year.

There are about 14 players in some of the circles and 13-15 million mobile subscribers are added every month.

The Ministry of Home Affairs' security concerns over Chinese telecom equipment -- as a result of which Indian telcos have opted to refrain from doing business with companies like Huawei and ZTE -- are also likely to be taken up in the strategy paper.

Almost all the major foreign players are now in India, from the world's largest mobile company, Vodafone, to UAE's top operator, Etisalat, who want to be part of the fastest growing wireless market.

Despite such a booming services market, manufacturing of telecom equipment by domestic companies has not taken off as desired by the government, prompting the DoT to focus on this area in the strategic plan as well.