Indian govt plans to set up postal regulator

THE government is planning to set up mail regulatory and development authority (MRDA) for the postal and courier services. Currently, there is no authority to regulate the Rs 3,500-crore private courier industry. Department of Post (DoP) has proposed amendments in the Indian Post Office Act, 1898, to make provision for the regulator.

MRDA will ensure that all the private courier service providers and mail services of the department of post comply with the terms and conditions of the registration. It will promote competition and efficiency in mail services.

The department has proposed that MRDA should be a single person full time regulatory body. The regulator will be appointed by the government. The person appointed as MRDA shall hold office for a term not exceeding three years.

It will also lay down quality of service (QoS) standards for the mail service providers. Both the private players and the department of posts will have to meet QoS parameters. MRDA will conduct periodical survey of the service providers to protect the interest of consumers.

“We want MRDA to be an independent authority. If it is under the department of posts, then it cannot, be an independent authority,” said Raj Kumar Saboo, chairman of Express Industry Council of India (EICI) and deputy managing director of First Flight Couriers.

The telecom regulator has done wonders in telecom sector. It is responsible for providing interconnections and regulating tariffs. When the sector was opened up for competition, BSNL and MTNL were the two incumbent operators.

Private players had apprehensions that the government policy will be biased towards the government players. However, there is a fair amount of level playing field between private players and the government operators