The surge in spam calls has posed a significant challenge for telecom users in India. These unwanted calls are mainly related to marketing, with scammers also using them for fraudulent activities. While ignoring these calls is an option, it may lead to missing important genuine calls. In the past, subscribers of major telecom operators such as Jio, Airtel, and Vi had to request to opt out of these marketing calls. However, the process has now been reversed. Subscribers will now be automatically opted out, and those interested in receiving marketing calls will need to request to opt in with their telecom operators.
This update was shared by Union Telecom Minister Joytiraditya Scindia during an interview with a TV channel. The Minister explained that previously, users had to request their telecom operator to not give their number for marketing calls, essentially opting out of such calls. He emphasized that the responsibility should lie with the telecom operator, not the subscriber. TRAI has now changed this rule, and telecom operators will ask subscribers whether they want marketing calls on their number. This new regulation will bring significant relief to telecom users in India, who have been troubled by the increase in marketing calls and scams.
In other news, Union Telecom Minister Joytiraditya Scindia highlighted BSNL’s plans for success at the Public Affairs Forum of India. He pointed out that while there are typically two major players in the telecom industry, India currently has four: Jio, Airtel, Vi, and BSNL. He emphasized the government's commitment to ensuring BSNL's success.
Regarding BSNL's 4G rollout, he mentioned that the priority is to deploy 100,000 4G sites by the middle of June next year to provide maximum bandwidth to BSNL's 8 percent market share of customers. He also noted that while not everyone in India needs 4G due to the prevalence of 2G and 3G users, there is a growing need to transition to 4G, as 4G coverage already extends to about 98 percent of the districts in India.
