Fixed-line users will soon be required to dial a full 10-digit number, even for local calls, if the government accepts the suggestion made by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI). It has proposed a new numbering system that would eradicate the STD code system prevalent in the country presently. This move would free unused phone numbers, as numbers would be assigned based on a telecom circle or state level.
The regulator has proposed a shift from the current STD-based system to a 10-digit system based on licensed service areas (LSA). It is a system that is to be implemented so that it may address long-term issues of telephone number shortages but with minimal dislocation. An LSA would typically mean an area of big size, for example, a state or a big city.
Trai recommended that to implement the LSA-based 10-digit closed numbering scheme for fixed-line service subscribers, they will have to dial all fixed-line to fixed-line calls using a prefix of '0', followed by the SDCA (Short Distance Charging Area) or STD code and the subscriber's number.
"Even local calls within the same SDCA are to be dialled using a prefix of '0', followed by the SDCA code and the subscriber number," the regulator recommended.
Despite the new numbering scheme for landline phones, TRAI has given a reassurance for subscribers.
No Changes to Existing Numbers:
Your phone number will remain the same, with no need to worry about updating your contacts. The Department of Telecom has been advised to give telecom operators six months to implement the new system to ensure a smooth rollout of the new system.
Regarding deactivated numbers, TRAI has proposed a more considerate approach. Deactivation Rules Relaxed: Mobile and fixed-line connections won't be deactivated until 90 days after the non-usage period expires. Even then, connections that remain inactive will only be mandatorily deactivated after 365 days. These recommendations aim to simplify the fixed-line numbering system and ensure better utilisation of phone number resources.
Trai recommended that no mobile or fixed-line connections deactivated due to nonusage shall be reused by the service providers until the expiry of a minimum period of 90 days from the date of deactivation.
In case a mobile or fixed-line connection has been deactivated/disconnected for reasons other than non-usage, such as surrender or disconnection by the customer or telecom operators, then connections shall be reused by the telecom operators only after the expiry of a minimum period of 180 days from the date of deactivation or disconnection.
In the consultation paper, Trai was exploring the option of penalising or charging for allocation of number resources. The regulator, in its recommendations, has dropped these options.
"No additional charge or financial disincentive on numbering resources has been recommended at this stage," Trai recommended.
The regulator has said that the DoT should monitor the annual usage of numbering resources allocated to telecom operators, and if required, may withdraw unutilised numbering resources.
Trai has reiterated that the DoT should expeditiously implement the caller name display system that it had recommended in February last year for both the regular telecom networks as well as the IP-based calling systems that are generally used by businesses for calling to their customers.
(With inputs from PTI)
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