Business   

TRAI sets up consumer fund

Staff Reporter

Service providers asked to transfer unclaimed amount to the fund

NEW DELHI: The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) on Friday announced setting up of the Telecommunication Consumers Education and Protection Fund to educate consumers on the developments in the sector and check operators from charging excess rates from subscribers.

Interestingly, the money for the fund would come from telecom service providers who have with them around Rs. 10 crore that have not been reimbursed to the subscribers.

Releasing the `Telecommunication Consumers Education and Protection Fund Regulations, 2007,' TRAI has asked all telecom service providers to transfer to the fund all excess amount collected by them from subscribers and is lying unclaimed.

It is estimated that various telecom companies in the last ten years have accumulated about Rs. 10 crore, which have not been reimbursed to subscribers, it said in a statement.

Stating that a committee would be formed for making recommendations to the Authority for utilisation of the amount, the telecom regulator has noted that refunds to a large number of consumers of different service providers became due under various directions or orders issued by the Authority from time to time.

But a significant amount of these excess moneys could not be refunded to the consumers for different reasons by the service providers concerned and accordingly, such moneys are lying with the service providers in separately earmarked accounts.

"The retention of such excess charged moneys, which actually belong to the consumers, by the service providers would amount to undue or unjust enrichment and, therefore, these moneys are required to be ploughed by an institutionalised mechanism for utilising such moneys for activities aimed at promotion of telecommunication consumer's education and protection,'' the telecom regulatory authority added.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Stories in this Section

Use of forex reserves for infrastructure soon: FM
Taiwanese firm unveils touch phone
Air India showcases first refurbished aircraft
TRAI sets up consumer fund
ETAS sets up Indian subsidiary
Parryware to invest Rs. 540 cr.
InterfaceFLOR expands
Aldea to provide SaaS on demand
Sensex sheds 41 points on profit selling
Rupee improves to 40.86
Exchange rates
Bullion rates
IBM launches operations in Lucknow
Good response to Corolla launch
ClickJobs.com to conduct job fair in U.S.
Park Hotels bags award
Inflation rate eases to 4.8 p.c.
Forex reserves up $1.174 b
Yes Bank, Reuters tie-up
CBDT extends date for FBT payment
2:1 bonus from Elecon Engineering

Copyright © 2007, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu