Landline Users May Need to Dial 10 Digits for Local Calls: Trai

New Delhi, Feb 6 (PTI) Fixed line users will need to dial an entire 10-digit number even for local calls if the recommendation of telecom regulator Trai issued on Thursday is accepted by the government.

The recommendation from Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) follows a reference sent from the Department of Telecom to work out a plan to address rising crunch in fixed-line phone numbers after their demand has picked up for broadband connections.

If Trai's recommendations are approved then telecom operators will be able to allocate unutilised landline numbers of a district for providing connections in other districts within the same telecom circles.

"TI (telecom identifiers or the phone numbers) resources generated using SDCA (also known as STD codes) codes with suffix sublevel(s) allocated to TSPs be used across the entire LSA rather than confined to specific SDCAs after migration to the LSA-based 10-digit closed numbering scheme,” Trai recommended.

The regulator has recommended migration from the existing SDCA-based (STD number-based) numbering scheme to an LSA (licenced service area) based 10-digit closed numbering scheme for fixed-line services” to effectively mitigate the phone number constraints in the long run for fixed-line services with minimal disruption.

A telecom circle or licensed service area (LSA) generally refers to a state-level area or large metropolitan area.

Trai recommended that to implement the LSA-based 10-digit closed numbering scheme for fixed-line service subscribers 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.

According to the recommendation, there should be no change in the existing phone numbers issued to subscribers.

Trai said that the Department of Telecom should give six months to telecom operators to implement the new numbering scheme.

For utilising numbers of deactivated, the Trai has recommended that no mobile or fixed-line connections shall be deactivated by the telecom operators until 90 days of the non-usage period expires.

It has been suggested that all mobile and fixed-line connections that remain inactive due to non-usage shall be mandatorily deactivated by the TSPs after 365 days post-expiration of 90 days of the non-usage period.

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 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 IP-based calling system that are generally used by businesses for calling to their customers.