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Cheaper call rates soon
Get ready to pay less for your phone calls. Tariffs are headed south as the OneIndia rate will be operationalised soon.
Get ready to pay less for your phone calls. Tariffs are headed south as the OneIndia rate will be operationalised soon.
A major hurdle to introduce One India mobile tariff by Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd is likely to be removed following a meeting between senior PMO officials and the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) chairman on access deficit charge (ADC).
This way, the deadlock over ADC appears near resolution. ADC is a charge the private operators pay to fund those operators offering telecom services in rural and inaccessible areas at a higher infrastructure cost. “The ADC regulation can be announced next week. We are waiting for a formal letter from the DoT. It will benefit mobile subscribers across the country in terms of lower tariff for calls,” said sources in the TRAI.
The TRAI has now been brought back into the process of formulation of ADC after the DoT invoked its powers under the TRAI Act, directing the regulator to keep its fourth revised ADC regulation in abeyance.
The DoT had pointed out that it wanted to study the possibility of recovering the ADC in a revenue-share format based on the adjusted gross revenue (AGR) and not on call-per-minute basis. The TRAI had accepted the instruction after a stiff resistance.
Baijal has reportedly pointed to DoT Secretary that ADC is within the purview of TRAI, be its rates or quantum.
The regulator has assured the DoT that the entire amount of ADC would be kept at the same level of about Rs. 5,000 crore including the ADC accrued from international long distance calls.
Sources in TRAI said that the regulation on ADC was important since it would help government secure ADC in a revenue-share format, along with licence fee that is paid by private operators on a quarterly basis.
“Importantly, it will pave way for BSNL to launch its One India tariff scheme. While BSNL will continue to get the ADC support, private operators too would be able to offer a flat rate since ADC will not be charged on calls per minute basis,” said a senior DoT official. The OneIndia service aims to offer one rate for calls to anywhere in the country.
The private telecom operators who have been demanding a complete removal of an ADC too are eagerly awaiting the ADC regulations since it would facilitate to offer new tariff packages to their customers depending upon new rates.
TRAI Chairman Pradeep Baijal was not available for comment as he was in all-day-long Next Generation Networks Conference in Mumbai.
