New Delhi: If you thought the telephone rates have already bottomed out, you were wrong!
Telephone users are yet to see the bottom of tariff reductions.
The Department of Telecom is understood to have given in-principle approval to MTNL's plea for an STD licence, and once MTNL goes STD, this could lead to the telecom PSU treating calls between Delhi and Mumbai as 'local'.
Senior officials of the MTNL as well as DoT said the PSU had applied for the NLD licence last month and it has been given in-principle approval to go ahead with it.
But the company is yet to get the license, which is expected any time.
MTNL officials said the PSU is completely ready with preparations to start its own STD networks and the state-run company may look at offering Delhi-Mumbai STD call rates as local.
From March 1, MTNL One India Plan will offer STD calls at Re 1 per minute. Even otherwise, while other operators offer STD at Rs 2.40 a minute, including BSNL, MTNL’s Delhi-Mumbai rates are Rs 1.90 a minute. The local call charges of MTNL are Rs 1.20 for three minutes.
"We are ready to start our NLD network within a week after getting the license," they said.
When MTNL was formed in 1986, the licensing provisions had enabled it (to have) an NLD license for its own network.
But that was in 1986, it has to be seen and read in today's scenario. MTNL used this provision effectively to convince DoT on the NLD license issue.
(With PTI inputs)
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