Trai lowers IUC: Meet R S Sharma, the man who is calling the shots

The telecom regulator insists his organisation's decision to slash interconnection charges was driven by his understanding of the advances in 4G technology

The chairman of Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai), Ram Sewak Sharma, is willing to be unconventional. It has often helped him leap over the many typical hurdles that stymie decision-making, 

he says. 

That world view earns him fierce opposition, too. As it did on Tuesday evening when he announced that interconnection user charges (IUC) would be cut by more than half. 

The steep 57 per cent cut in the charges service providers pay each other for calls terminating on their respective networks has been excellent news for Reliance Jio’s year-old service only; for established incumbents such as Vodafone-Idea and Airtel,