Union Minister for Information Technology and Communications A Raja has called for establishing an appropriate legal and regulatory environment to ensure optimum use of Information and Communication Technologies.

"We should remain vigilant about the possible misuse of ICTs, like any other technology, by some disgruntled elements for their misconceived notions and objectives. This may necessitate establishing an appropriate legal and regulatory environment, as well as technical methods to ensure optimum use of these important technologies. We should make all efforts to bridge the digital divide," Raja said while inaugurating the 12-day World Telecommunications Development Conference-2010 at the Hyderabad International Convention Centre here today.

While India followed a technology-neutral policy and opened its telecom sector to a variety of technologies and equipment from all over the world, the Indian industry has not lagged behind and was making rapid strides in innovating and adopting new technologies suited to local conditions, the Minister said.

"India has been making steady progress in various useful applications of space technology. The thrust in our space programme is towards national development in areas like communication, broadcasting, developmental communications, distance education, earth exploration services and space sciences. Similarly, the Indian telecom industry has been spearheading the transformation from legacy systems to state-of-the-art digital systems. Our aim is to make India a hub for telecom manufacturing through various policies," Raja said.

Noting that one-third of the world's population was still struggling to get access to basic voice telephony, the Minister hoped the WTDC would take an appropriate decision to bridge this divide. "We are willing to share our expertise and facilities with other countries in the spirit of cooperation to ensure telecommunications for all," the Minister assured.

International Telecommunication Union Secretary-General Hamadoun Toure said cyber security has emerged as a global problem and it required a global solution. "We must bring together all stakeholders, not just government and industry, but also civil society and media, to address this issue. We must make sure that we do not just bring broadband to the people, but that we do so responsibly. We must preserve cyber peace and deliver cyber security in a world that is always connected and always online," Toure observed.

ITU Telecom Development Bureau Director Sami al Basheer, Department of Telecommunications Secretary P J Thomas and others were present on the occasion.