Message is delivered

Delighted subscribers

Just when avid texters were getting used to the 100 messages a day limit imposed by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), the plan has been changed!

The limit has been increased to 200 messages a day much to the delight of avid cellphone users. Though the plan came into effect from November 3, it took some time before the users could actually benefit from it.

According to a statement released by TRAI, this change has been brought about due to the requests of some of the service providers and consumers.

A message has been sent by the service providers regarding this as well (though not everyone has received it). When Metrolife spoke to  cellphone users, some said that they were elated at this rule while others said the new change has its own limitations.

Sana, a student, is extremely happy. “It used to be really difficult otherwise. For me, my first two messages are charged 50 paise and the rest 98 are free. I am happy that the message limit has become 200 now. I can message my friends a lot more and get my doubts cleared whenever I am preparing for exams.”

For Mani Ganda, an office assistant, the plan took time to get activated. “I am very happy with the new plan as 100 messages were surely not enough for me. I used to finish them off by afternoon itself. So I used to have two SIMs,” he says.

“Before the 100 message plan came into being, I hardly used to make calls. But during this time, I ended up making many. So it’s good that they have increased the limit to 200,” he adds. However, when he called up the customer care of his service provider, they gave different answers every time. “First, they said the plan hasn’t been activated and second time, they said it has been activated but once I finish using 100 messages, I will be charged Re 1 for the next 100 messages.”  

Zohra, an engineering student, faced the same problem. “Till a few days back, my messages wouldn’t go once I reached a limit of 100. But when this plan was announced, I called up the call centre to find out,” she says. Apart from her call to the centre being charged, even her messages were charged once she finished 100 messages. “Only after I spent Rs 6 on the messages, I realised that my messages were being charged and I stopped sending them. So this plan is actually of no use to me because I am a student and have to be careful about my expenses.”

When Metrolife called up the customer care of a leading service provider, the agent said, “The plan has now been activated. However, one needs to have the free SMS plan activated to avail 200 free messages. Otherwise, every message will be charged Re 1 from hundredth-one message.”

Be it 100 or 200 messages, free or charged, if there is one thing that cellphone users like, it’s a consistent plan that gives them value for money.