Trai Asked Telcos to do a Similar Thing Before
Trai had asked the telcos to see if they could extend the prepaid subscription of their users when the lockdown was imposed. In a letter to the telcos, Trai told them that users who are looking to top-up or recharge their plans might face problems due to lockdown so they should ideally extend their subscription. Most of the people living in rural areas don’t recharge their phones online by themselves. Instead, they go to a local vendor to get it done. Because now the lockdown is extended, their originally extended plan might be over. This is why telcos should extend the plan and support people staying inside their homes.
Operators are Going to Monitor the Situation and Decide Accordingly
The telecom operators are monitoring the situation of the country and will make a decision which is the most suitable for them at the time. Telcos such as Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Idea, and Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited had already extended their prepaid plans for their customers giving them a plan validity until April 17, 2020. Trai assured the operators that they would be compensated for all the losses which they face due to the extension of their prepaid plans. There is a possibility that the subsidy to the operators can be offered with the Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF) which has Rs 51,500 crore cash lying idle with the Department of Telecommunications (DoT).
