The government of Uttar Pradesh is reportedly migrating the closed user group (CUG) mobile connections of nearly 4,200 employees from Vodafone Idea Limited (Vi) to state-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL).
The migration will affect staff across various administrative departments at the Lucknow Secretariat headquarters, ranging from entry-level computer assistants and review officers to senior-level special secretaries. The government has selected BSNL to replace Vi, for all official CUG mobile services. The Telephone Cell has already begun distributing new BSNL CUG SIM cards to staff.
A key concern among employees is that the migration will result in new numbers being assigned rather than allowing them to retain their existing ones. Staff have pointed out that their current CUG numbers have been in use for an extended period and are listed across official records, directories and rosters throughout the state. They have suggested that mobile number portability be permitted, allowing employees to keep their existing numbers while switching to the BSNL network.
