The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has reject the proposal to move the mobile number from 10 digits to 11 digits and proposed that the existing 10-digit numbering scheme should be continued to avoid inconvenience to the customers that would accompany any move to shift to an 11 digit numbering scheme.
Giving a two pronged strategy, TRAI has recommended that India should migrate to an “Integrated Numbering Scheme” for Fixed (land line) and Mobile services by 31st December, 2011.
In other words both fixed line and mobile phones will have a 10-digit number. This would make available enough numbers to cater to expansion of existing services and introduction of new services for the next 30-40 years.
This integrated numbering will also facilitate extension of number portability to fixed lines.Till the integrated scheme is implemented the dialling of intra-circle calls from fixed lines to mobile will be with ‘0’ prefixed.
This would enable exploitation of spare capacity available in the sublevels of existing Short Distance Charging Area (SDCA) codes, to the extent of about one billion numbers without affecting any telephone number or STD code.
