Telecom giants Jio, Airtel, and Vi recently raised tariffs by 11-25%, impacting millions of users.
The Indian government confirms it will not interfere in tariff hikes.
India has one of the lowest mobile data costs globally, with 1GB costing under $0.20.
Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea (Vi), popular telecom operators in India had previously hiked their tariffs between 11 to 25 per cent leaving millions affected with the decision. While many of the users switched to BSNL, some of the users complained about the tariff hike. It is worth noting that the tariff prices were hiked for both prepaid and postpaid mobile plans.
The Indian government has now stated that it will not intervene with tariff increases because those choices are made by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI). According to a TelecomTalk report, Pemmasani Chandra Sekhar, Minister of State for Communications and Rural Development, noted that TRAI has enabled telecom service providers to determine their own prices in the competitive market since 2004. Prices are based on supply and demand dynamics, which is inline with international standards.
Also Read: Airtel and Jio plans hike: How you can still save money
However, TRAI mandates that telecom operators notify customers of any changes to their rates within seven days of the change taking effect. According to reports, the regulator is also consulting on whether the market requires prepaid plans that provide service validity but only SMS and calling benefits—no data.
“In 2004, after determining the presence of adequate competition in the telecom services market, in line with many countries in the world, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) adopted the policy of forbearance for the mobile telecom services,” the report quoted Pemmasani Chandra Sekhar saying.
Further, Sekhar also stated that India is among the countries to have lowest telecom tariffs globally. Talking about the specifics, he stated that the average cost of 1GB mobile data in India is under $0.20, a stark contrast to the $6 per GB in the United States.
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