The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has issued a clarification amidst deceptive media stories concerning its latest session paper on the revision of the Nationwide Numbering Plan (NNP). Opposite to latest claims in some media retailers, TRAI has categorically denied any proposal to impose charges on cellular or landline numbers, or costs for holding a number of SIMs or numbering assets. The authority asserts that such hypothesis is baseless and goals to make clear any misinformation circulating among the many public.
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TRAI’s Clarification
“Some media homes (print, digital, and social media) have reported that TRAI has proposed introducing charges for cellular and landline numbers, aiming to make sure the environment friendly allocation and use of those ‘finite assets.’ The hypothesis that TRAI intends to impose costs on clients for holding a number of SIMs or numbering assets is unequivocally false,” the telecom regulator stated in an official assertion.
Nationwide Numbering Plan Revision
TRAI’s session paper titled “Revision of Nationwide Numbering Plan,” launched on June 6, 2024, goals to boost the administration and utilisation of Telecommunication Identifier (TI) assets in India. This initiative follows a request from the Division of Telecommunications (DoT) dated September 29, 2022, in search of suggestions from TRAI on the revised Nationwide Numbering Plan to undertake environment friendly administration and even handed utilisation of numbering assets within the nation.
In its newest assertion, TRAI stated it has persistently advocated for minimal regulatory intervention, selling forbearance and self-regulation of market forces. “We unequivocally repudiate and emphatically condemn any spurious conjectures that perpetuate the circulation of deceptive data regarding the session paper at hand,” it stated.
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The ultimate suggestions stemming from this session shall be offered to the DoT after a radical evaluation of stakeholder inputs and worldwide greatest practices. TRAI reaffirms its dedication to fostering an environment friendly and equitable telecommunications setting for all stakeholders.
The DoT is the only real custodian of TI assets in India and oversees their allocation for each landline and cellular networks in keeping with the Worldwide Telecommunication Union’s (ITU) world requirements.
