No roaming charges from next year: Kapil Sibal

September 24, 2012

Sibal_No_Roaming_charges_CD

 

New Delhi, September 24: Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal on Monday said that mobile phone subscribers will not have to pay roaming charges from next year.

 

“From next year… Our secretary has told you that it will be free from next year,” Mr. Sibal said here in response to a query on the timing of removing roaming charges as proposed in the National Telecom Policy 2012.

 

The Minister was speaking to the media on the sidelines of the curtain raiser event of India Internet Governance Conference.

 

NTP 2012, approved in May, aims to abolish roaming charges and allow mobile phone subscribers to use same number across country without having to pay extra charges for services once they are outside their telecom circle.

 

Meanwhile, Telecom Secretary R. Chandrashekhar said the Department of Telecom (DoT) is working on Notice Inviting Applications for spectrum auction after which it will work on unified licence (UL) guidelines — also a part of the NTP 2012.

 

“We are first going to attend to all issues linked to auction. The moment NIA is issued this week, we will focus on UL. After details of full UL is worked out, the modalities for free roaming will follow,” he said.

 

As per the schedule, NIA will be issued on September 28.

 

GSM industry body COAI Director General Rajan S Mathews said he appreciated the concept of free roaming, but added that industry will have to work on details of implementation of ‘One Nation — Free Roaming.’

 

When asked about the impact on mobile phone call rates, Mathews said, “That is matter which we will have to work with TRAI (telecom regulator). TRAI is ultimately responsible for setting the tariffs...We hope that TRAI will follow due process of consultation paper.”

 

He added that in a consultation paper, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India will define what they expect and models they will use for determining tariff for nation wide free roaming.

 

 


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April 5,2020

New Delhi, April 5: People were seen buying diyas and candles across the country to light them at 9 p.m. on Sunday to fight the "darkness of coronavirus" as requested by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Although the country is under a lockdown and all the shops barring those selling essential items are shut, but a number of makeshift roadside shops and carts have cropped up selling earthen lamps or diyas at various places.

The earthen lamps, along with other 'puja samgari', are also sold near various temples. Those shops also opened on Sunday.

Gatherings at the temples and other religious places too are barred.
Those who did not find diyas in their localities contended with candles available at the local general stores.

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He asked the people to turn off all the lights in their homes and stand at doors or balconies and light candles or diyas, torches or mobile flashlights for 9 minutes on April 5.

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Meanwhile, the number of positive cases of coronavirus in the country continues to surge. As per the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases is 3,374 with 79 deaths.

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