Long queues, SIM cards scarcity on Day 1 of Jio launch

A Reliance Digital employee says local dealers have taken SIM cards in bulk to sell them at a premium

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Customers joining long queues outside Reliance Jio stores here on Monday — the day of the full service launch — were often disappointed to find SIM cards unavailable.

A visit to a few stores in Sarojini Nagar and RK Puram, in the south west, made it clear that demand for Reliance Jio SIMs far outstretched supply. Customers were seen running from one store to the next.

Few of the customers who spoke to Business Standard said though there was a paucity of SIMs at the Reliance Digital stores, local dealers had these. They were charging between Rs 300 and Rs 600.

SIM cards are available free of charge  but the dealers were making a quick buck, thanks to the surge in demand.

A Reliance Digital store employee, who did not want to be named, said local dealers had acquired SIM cards in bulk and were selling these at a premium.

The company was yet to comment at the time of going to press.

Another Reliance Digital employee said they had issued tokens to walk-in customers who could not get a SIM on Monday.

“Once we get the SIMs, we’ll call them,” he added.

A few customers said though they had been given a token on Friday, they were yet to get a SIM on Monday.

On September 1, Mukesh Ambani announced the launch of Reliance Jio services for September 5.  

The company will provide unlimited services up to December 31, after which users have been promised voice calls — both local and subscriber trunk dialling or STD — as well as roaming free of cost, for life.

The data charges are also pegged as low as Rs 50 per GB, compared to Rs 250 a GB prevailing in the market.