Affordable access must be a right: Scindia

Access with affordability should be a right across every industry, Communications Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said on Monday, citing sharp fall in voice and data tariffs and the exponential rise in internet and broadband users as evidence of how India has expanded its digital access.

Backing his argument with figures, Scindia said voice call rates have fallen from `16 per minute in the 1990s to becoming free, while data costs have dropped 97 per cent from ` 287 per GB in 2014 to about `8 per GB currently.