The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has directed operators not to provide discriminatory tariffs to subscribers in the same class.
It said telcos should report all plans to the Authority within seven days of their launch.
The Authority said the telecom service providers should ‘notify different rates for different persons or class of persons for similar telecommunication services and where different rates are fixed’.
The decision comes as soon after the new entrant Reliance Jio’s complaint against other players, including Bharti Airtel, Vodafone India and Idea Cellular.
For instance, in a complaint dated April 21, Jio wrote to TRAI saying certain recharge plans of Airtel (₹293 and ₹449 in certain circles) are ‘being marketed in misleading manner in gross violation of extant telecommunications laws’.
Therefore, in its latest direction, TRAI said that all the tariffs offered to the consumers shall be in accordance with the provisions of Telecommunication Tariff Order, 1999 and shall not be discriminatory between the subscribers of the same class and to ensure that every tariff that is offered to a customer is invariably reported to the Authority.
It added that all reporting framework shall be under the forbearance regime unless an express exemption has been provided in the Telecommunication Tariff Order, 1999 (as amended from time to time).