TRAI, the telecom regulator of India last week issued recommendations on ‘Ensuring Adequate Numbering Resources for Fixed Line and Mobile Services’. Some reported that TRAI has recommended 11-digit numbering scheme for mobile services. However, TRAI today clarified that it has not recommended 11-digit numbering scheme for mobile services and the country will continue to follow a 10-digit numbering.
TRAI said that it has categorically rejected shifting to an 11-digit mobile numbering plan since 2010. Further, TRAI said that it has recommended a dialling prefix ‘0’ while making a call from a fixed line number to mobile number.
“The introduction of a dialling prefix for a particular type of call is not akin to increasing the number of digits in the telephone number. This change in dialling pattern will generate 2544 million additional numbering resources for mobile services to cater to the future requirements,” said TRAI.
In the existing dialling scheme, the dialling prefix ‘0’ is mandatory while making inter-SDCA1 call from a fixed line number to fixed line number. This dialling prefix ‘0’ is also mandatory when calls are made from a mobile number to any fixed line.
As per the information received by TRAI from DoT through its communication dated 4th November 2019, a total of 1917.3 million numbering resources for mobile services has been allocated by DoT. However, this excludes around 241.6 million numbers worth MSC codes,
which have been surrendered and are lying spare with DoT .
DoT has also allocated a 13-digit numbering series for M2M services,
which consists of 3-digit M2M identifier, 4-digit licensee identifier, and 6-digit device number. So, gradually all the M2M devices which were using
the 10-digit numbering series are getting migrated to the new 13-digit
17 series.