‘TRAI taking all measures to protect customer interests’

As the Indian telecommunication subscriber base grows phenomenally, with the urban tele-density reaching 148 per cent and rural areas fast catching up, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) is making efforts to improve customer satisfaction.

As part of it, TRAI has evolved a mechanism that addresses the customer concerns through Telecom Service Providers (TSP).

Speaking at a Customer Outreach Programme here on Thursday, TRAI Principal Advisor S.K. Gupta said as call-dropping was a big issue, Airtel and Idea had migrated to per-second billing instead of minute-based billing.

Issues falling in the regulatory framework of TRAI, which include not just landline and mobile phones but several other services like FM radio,

Direct-To-Home (DTH) TV, Internet Protocol on TV (IPTV), cable televisionand even community radio, were taken up with the TSPs and punitive action taken whenever customer grievances remain unresolved at the appellate level, Mr. Gupta said.

TRAI advisors Agneshwar Sen and G. Muralidhar and Senior Research Officers G.P. Vishnoi and P.S.R. Murthy spoke on the activities of TRAI.

Cable TV digitisation

According to a presentation made by TRAI officers, more than 2.20 crore Set Top Boxes (STB) have been installed so far in the four metros and 38 Tier-I cities in the first two of the four phases of the digitisation of cable TV connections.

The process is to be completed in all urban areas by the end of 2015 and throughout the country before January 1, 2017.