DoT extends subscriber verification deadline to Dec 31

"The service providers approached DoT in October for extension of time. They stated that creation of infrastructure for re-verification had taken some time," DoT said in a statement.

Now since the re-verification activities are in full swing, the operators need some more time to complete the process, it added. DoT had asked telecom operators to complete re-verification of its subscribers over a window of one year starting from November 1, 2009 and had fixed October 31 as the deadline.

"After consideration of all relevant aspects and consultation with security agencies, the time limit has been extended till December 31, 2010," it said. In the wake of security concerns, the telecom ministry has also proposed introducing new subscriber verification norms. One of the proposals states that telecom operators should send SIM cards to subscribers by registered post or through messengers on the rolls of the company.

On average, telecom operators add 10-12 million subscribers every month. In August, operators notched up 18.18 million new subscribers, taking the total number of mobile users in India to 670.60 million, as per the latest data from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India.