HC scraps telecom regulator's order to lower number portability charge

Court says TRAI decision on revising cost downward flawed as it disregarded costs to the service providers

The Delhi High Court on Friday set aside the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s (TRAI) decision to lower the fees for Mobile Number Portability (MNP) from Rs 19 per port to Rs 4 per port.

The fee was first set at Rs 19 per port, but was later brought down to Rs 4 by an amendment made to the rules on August 31, 2018. TRAI had then said that the amount shall be paid only if the porting request of the customer was successful.

The decision of TRAI was challenged by Syniverse Technologies (India) and MNP Interconnection Telecom Solutions India,