HYDERABAD: Here’s good news for mobile users. Henceforth, if you are traveling within the country, phone bills will not burn a hole in your pocket, thanks to the New Telecom Policy (NTP) 2012 approved by the Cabinet Thursday.What’s more, subscribers can retain their existing numbers even if they relocate from one state to another without having to pay more. But users may have to wait a while -- at least three years, say industry sources -- before these measures come into effect, as the policy did not indicate any timeframe for implementation. Currently, users pay additional charges upwards of Rs 1 per minute for every call made and received on roaming. Also, portability was not permitted across states.These consumer-centric initiatives replace rules introduced in 1999, and come at a time when the telecom sector is embroiled in the 2G spectrum scandal.The new policy measures are also expected to give a much-needed breather to consumers sometimes hit with fradulent roaming tariffs.“The target is nationwide mobile number portability and free roaming,” said telecom minister Kapil Sibal. It remains to be seen whether there will be relaxations for SMSes too.The NTP 2012 aims at increasing rural teledensity from the current 39 per cent to 100 percent by 2020. Domestic manufacturing will be given a fillip. The policy envisages a pan-India, single-licence under a new unified licence regime. As a result, licences are delinked from spectrum.The policy also seeks to ease merger and acquisition rules to facilitate consolidation. Norms will also be relaxed for Internet telephony, which is currently allowed in a restricted manner.
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