With the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) yet to accept the recommendations made by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) on mobile number portability (MNP), the nationwide rollout of MNP is likely to be delayed.
In September 2013, TRAI had mandated operators to implement full MNP within six months. MNP allows a subscriber to retain their existing number while moving from one operator to another, but only within a circle. However, the nationwide rollout of MNP will allow users to retain their number even when shifting to another circle. DoT had directed TRAI to reconsider a few of its recommendations which suggested changes in existing licencing norms for ensuring nationwide rollout of MNP.
However, the regulatory authority is yet to hear from the department. According to TRAI, once DoT accepts its recommendations, it will take another six months to implement nationwide MNP, thereby leading to further delay in ensuring that users can access their existing numbers even when they migrate from one circle to another.
