Pramod K Mittal to continue as COAI Chairperson in FY24

Reliance Jio president Pramod K Mittal will continue as the chairperson of the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) while chief regulatory officer of Vodafone Idea, P Balaji will be the vice chairperson for FY2024.

The apex industry body representing telecom operators in India announced the leadership changes at its annual general body meeting for the financial year 2022-23 held Wednesday.

“Amongst many challenges as well as opportunities, the telecom industry stood resilient and continued to serve the nation as an essential service, delivering digital connectivity to individuals, businesses and various other sectors of the economy,” SP Kochhar, director general, COAI, said in a statement.

“COAI is optimistic about the opportunities that lie ahead for the industry, particularly as India advances with 5G and allied technologies,” he added.

Mittal comes with over 40 years of experience in telecommunications. Before joining Jio as president, he served as the Deputy Director General (DDG) and Senior DDG at the Department of Telecommunications, working in the telecom policy formulation and implementation, licensing and regulatory wings of the department.

Balaji heads Vodafone Idea’s regulatory, public policy and government relations and has been working in the telecom sector since its infancy in 1993. Balaji was the managing director of Nokia India and Sony Mobile before joining Vodafone Idea. He also held senior positions in Tata Group, AT&T, Ericsson, and others.