Telcos Need to Sort Out Issues to Fix Call Drop Malaise: DoT

In a stern message to telecom operators, the Department of Telecommunication has said the industry can't give excuses like problems in installing mobile towers for rising call drops, and asked them to get their act together to tackle the issue.

Telecom Secretary Aruna Sundararajan told PTI in an interview that the Department of Telecommunication (DoT) will meet the industry after 21 January as soon as the TRAI report comes out on quality of mobile services benchmarked on the regulator's new call drop formula.

Acknowledging that mobile operators do face difficulty in setting up towers at times, given resistance from people, she said that it cannot be cited as an excuse for call drops, and asserted that investments will have to made by them in upgrading infrastructure.

The government is very concerned about call drop (and service) quality. We want to convey to the industry that the situation can’t continue and they have to take corrective steps.

Aruna Sundararajan, Telecom Secretary

The DoT has taken up the issue around rolling out of telecom infrastructure in states, she said, adding that “the industry has to get its act together. They have to earmark more investments into infrastructure.”

TRAI’s new and stringent call drop rules came into force from 1 October 2017 and the quarter-ended December 2017 will see the first instance of reporting under the new formula.

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has already asked the operators to submit their network-related data for checking service quality under the new parameters.

As per the new rules, the telecom operators may face a maximum penalty of Rs 10 lakh for call drops which will now be measured at mobile tower level instead of the telecom circle level.

Incumbents have been juggling their fight between Reliance Jio and the Telecom Ministry, looking to mend the issues at hand, but their claims are also highlighted with the constant drop in prices of data, while voice calling has effectively become free.

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