The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), in collaboration with the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), inaugurated the ITU–TRAI Workshop on Performance, Quality of Service and Quality of Experience in Bhubaneswar. The two-day international programme convened National Regulatory Authorities (NRAs), service providers and technical specialists from around the world to strengthen collaborative approaches to telecom service-quality frameworks. The inaugural ceremony featured a lamp-lighting, followed by a welcome address from Atul Kumar Chaudhary, Secretary, TRAI, and the inaugural address by Anil Kumar Lahoti, Chairman, TRAI, in the presence of senior representatives from ITU and the Government of Odisha.
In his welcome remarks, Atul Kumar Chaudhary reiterated TRAI’s commitment to transparent, consumer-centric regulation. He highlighted the growing need for global cooperation in improving service-quality systems and noted that discussions on connectivity mapping, satellite-based quality assessment and regional regulatory models would play a significant role in advancing collective understanding.
A video message from Dr Pemmasani Chandra Sekhar, Union Minister of State for Communications, was shared during the session. He emphasised India’s focus on delivering reliable and high-quality connectivity, reflected on ongoing efforts under the Telecommunications Act, 2023, and welcomed joint initiatives of TRAI and ITU to strengthen global best practices and standards.
Participants also viewed a message from Seizo Onoe, Director, ITU Telecommunication Standardization Bureau (ITU-TSB), who underscored the importance of harmonised QoS standards for equitable digital transformation. He reaffirmed ITU’s support for member states in developing QoS and QoE frameworks tailored to national needs.
Addressing the gathering, Manoj Ahuja, IAS, Chief Secretary, Government of Odisha, spoke on the central role of telecommunications in public safety, disaster response and welfare governance. Citing Odisha’s experience with cyclone and tsunami alerts, he highlighted the dependence of welfare schemes, rural governance, public works and service delivery on robust and reliable connectivity. Stressing the importance of consumer-focused QoS systems, he called for enhanced cooperation across countries and states to strengthen service quality for all.
Delivering the inaugural address, Anil Kumar Lahoti highlighted India’s significant progress in building a digitally inclusive telecom ecosystem. He noted that India has achieved the world’s fastest 5G rollout, supported by over 1.23 billion telecom subscribers and nearly 99 per cent 4G coverage. He emphasised the country’s consistently high data consumption levels, coupled with affordable tariffs that enable widespread digital access.
Lahoti also underlined India’s role as a model for emerging economies in bridging the rural–urban digital divide, advancing mobile-led financial inclusion and simplifying regulatory frameworks through the Telecommunications Act, 2023. He referred to TRAI’s Quality of Service Rating Framework for Buildings as a key initiative to improve transparency in service-quality assessment and pointed to the growing need for stronger indoor connectivity as a majority of data usage occurs within buildings.
He called for deeper multilateral cooperation and proposed exploring an ITU Regional Group for Asia focused on QoS and QoE, aimed at tackling challenges related to fraud prevention, cybersecurity and network interoperability. He stated that India’s experience demonstrates how coordinated policy, regulatory reform and strong stakeholder collaboration can advance digital inclusion and empowerment across economies.
Concluding the opening session, Martin Adolph, Study Group Advisor, ITU, expressed appreciation to TRAI for hosting the workshop and thanked the Government of Odisha for its support. He acknowledged the contributions of all delegates, noting that the workshop’s discussions would directly inform the QSDG’s future work on strengthening global QoS and QoE frameworks.
The programme featured four thematic sessions on 4 December covering connectivity mapping, satellite-service performance, measurement methodologies and a regional panel on regulatory approaches across Asia. These sessions brought together regulators, industry leaders and technical experts to exchange methodologies, tools and perspectives. On 5 December, the workshop continued with a meeting of the Quality of Service Development Group (QSDG), followed by a rapporteur group meeting of ITU-T Study Group 12 on the “NRA Repository” initiative, aimed at building a global library of QoS and QoE parameters used by regulators.
The workshop sought to deepen understanding of challenges in QoS and QoE management and support the development of actionable best practices for regulatory bodies and service providers. Delegates engaged in collaborative dialogue and peer learning to strengthen universal, reliable and secure telecom services across regions. Hosted jointly by TRAI and ITU-T, the event drew around 150 participants from Asia, Africa and Europe—both physically and virtually—reflecting the global relevance of telecom standards and policy development. Attendees included regulatory officials, operators, technology vendors and measurement-tool specialists such as Opensignal, Ookla and Keysight Technologies from 39 countries.
