Resolve issue of pesky calls: House panel to DoT

Concerned over unwarranted and pesky calls and SMSes, a Parliamentary panel has asked the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) to solve all the problems associated with the issue and also address the difficulties expressed by service providers.

The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Information Technology has noted that DoT/Trai have taken various steps to address the issue of pesky calls.

According to the the DoT, most of the service providers, except the two government-owned firms BSNL and MTNL, are ready to implement the regulation, the committee said in a report tabled in Parliament.

Last December, Trai had come out with recommendations, 'The Telecom Commercial Communications Customer Preference Regulations, 2010' to curb the menace of pesky calls and SMSes.

Since then, many deadlines have been missed for implementing the guidelines in view of the absence of an identified number series.

Trai has recommended a maximum fine of Rs 2.5 lakh on telemarketing companies for making unsolicited calls or SMSes to a consumer registered under the national customer preference register -- a modified version of Trai's 'Do Not Call Registry' list.

The subscriber may choose to be under the 'Fully Blocked' category, which is akin to the 'Do Not Call Registry'. The user can also choose the 'Partially Blocked' category, in which case he will receive SMSes in the categories chosen by him.

Trai had identified seven categories -- banking and financial products, real estate, education, health, consumer goods, automobiles, communication and entertainment, tourism and leisure.

In case of violations, as per the revised guidelines, the telemarketers will have to pay a fine of Rs 25,000 for the first offence, which will go up to Rs 75,000 in case of a second violation, Rs 80,000 for the third, Rs 1.25 lakh for the fourth, Rs 1.50 lakh for the fifth and Rs 2.5 lakh for the sixth offence, following which the number will be blocked by all service providers.