Centre may nudge telcos to offer 30-day recharge plans

Telecom operators' 28-day plans push users to recharge 13 times a year, raising annual costs

- Jatin Grover

Trai requires operators to include one 30-day plan in each prepaid category as part of bouquets, said Union communications minister Jyotiraditya Scindia.

(PTI)

A longstanding anomaly in telecom pricing that effectively nudges users into 13 recharges a year is back in the spotlight.

The Centre is looking to push operators to more actively promote 30-day recharge plans to improve consumer awareness, according to communications minister Jyotiraditya Scindia.

The issue was raised by lawmaker Raghav Chadha in Parliament. He said operators offer so-called “monthly” recharge plans with a 28-day validity. The same prompts users to recharge 13 times a year instead of 12 and puts additional burden on them.

"We are urging TSPs (telecom service providers) to market that 30-day plan a little more, but that is already prevalent," Scindia told Mint.

The minister said the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) has clearly mandated that the bundle of plans that any operator comes out with must have “a onetime plan, a custom plan, and all three categories of plans that have a 30-day plan”.