TRAI recommends dialing all fixed to mobile calls with ‘0’ prefix

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) on Friday released its recommendations on ‘Ensuring Adequate Numbering Resources for Fixed Line and Mobile Services’. The telecom watchdog has recommended to dial all fixed to mobile calls with the prefix ‘0’.

After analyzing the comments from the stakeholders and discussion held during the OHD, it noted that the migration involving large scale changes to unified numbering scheme in the existing stage was not recommended.

However, since it is important to have sufficient numbering resources for fixed line/mobile services. It suggested withdrawing sparingly used sub levels ‘2’,’3′,’4′,’5′, and ‘6’ after seeking sub level wise utilization from the TSPs providing fixed line services. TSPs who do not launch their services even after one year of allocation of sub levels will also be stripped of it.

TRAI has recommended that all SIM based M2M connections using 10 digit numbering series should be shifted to the 13-digit numbering series allocated by DoT for M2M communication.

TRAI has suggested that all fixed to mobile calls should be dialed with ‘0’ prefix, with no change in dialing plan for fixed to fixed, mobile to fixed, mobile to mobile calls. It has suggested a time of one month to be given to all the TSPs to implement this scheme. TRAI suggested an announcement being implemented in the fixed line switches intimating the requirement of dialing the prefix ‘0’ for all fixed to mobile calls.

It further stated that the existing SDCA codes starting with ‘6’, ‘3’, ‘4’, and ‘2’ may be used for mobile services by suffixing with ‘0’, ‘1’, ‘8’ and ‘9’ after exhausting all surrendered numbering resources. The follow up can be used by levels ‘3’, ‘4’. and ‘2’ successively. An automated allocation of numbering resources using number management software could be brought in to speed up the process of allocation in an efficient and transparent number.