Government To Address Telecom Industry Issue; Might Take Call On New SIM Activation

If you are planning to buy a new SIM during a lockdown, then there is good news for you as the government is likely to take a call on the same soon. The government is reviewing the SIM activation process and security issues.

"The DoT (Department of Telecommunications) will take a call on SIM activation after reviewing security-related issues around it because the SIM will have to be delivered on the doorstep during the lockdown," COAI director general Rajan Mathews said.

He said that the industry has resolved network issues without any major support from the Department of Telecommunication (DoT). Mathews also informed that the telecom secretary Anshu Prakash also check the preparedness of the telcos to resolve the issues related to handling network issues.

"In taking stock of the performance of the networks over the past weeks of the quarantine, a note was taken of the substantial support provided by the DoT to the industry to meet the challenges of the increased traffic load on the networks and the logistical issues involved in maintaining the uptime of the networks," Rajan Mathews said.

Furthermore, the ministry acknowledged that working with the industry will resolve the issues related to the faulty base station. On the other hand, COAI said that the industry has also asked the government to consider their demands on reducing the license and spectrum fees along with spectrum debt payments.

Meanwhile, the industry is looking for support from the local authorities of the sealed areas as technicians are not allowed to check the sites if there is an issue. The Delhi based body needs DoT intervention in the matter, so it can be resolved soon. COAI also said that this may lead to a breakdown of services in those circles.