There seems to be no end to unwanted calls and messages from
telemarketers in sight, as the ban on such communications is set to be
deferred for the fourth time. It seems unlikely that the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) would resolve its dispute with the department of telecom (DoT) over issuing a new number series to telemarketing companies using landline phones.
Trai had earlier demanded a separate identifiable landline number series, in line with a new mobile series for telemarketers, but DoT has clearly said it would amount to breach of security at the telephone exchange level.
"Most of the work in case of landlines is done manually. Fixed-line network is not automatic like mobile networks. Identification in case of fixedline is done through manual process," said a DoT official.
While deferring the ban on unwanted calls and messages from telemarketers for the third time, Trai had announced a fresh deadline of March 21 late last month.
A DoT official explained that in the present situation if any call originates from a landline then it can be identified based on the STD code - the initial digits - and then the levels (digits following the STD code), which differ from exchange to exchange within a city.
If the identifiable series of '140' is used, it will impact the numbering system being used for allocating new connections.
Also, it will be difficult for security agencies to track calls as it will display a uniform code instead of the STD code for connections across the country, the official said.
"There will be extra capacity in each exchange as telemarketers are not present everywhere. A person with wrong intention will be able to plug into a network manually and run away after misusing the network," the official said. The DoT official said that it was also not commercially viable for telecom service providers to upgrade exchanges in all parts of the country.
DoT has asked Trai to re-consider its demand and bring changes in the way it wants to implement regulation on pesky calls and SMSes.
Telecom operators have also been pushing for deferring regulation on telemarketers as they have their commitments with the telemarketers.
The business of bulk messages is worth over Rs 335 crore in India, with over 16,800 crore bulk messages being sent to mobile users every year. Of this, over 12,000 crore messages are sent by Tata Teleservices alone (71 per cent market share).
Courtesy: Mail Today 
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