STD calls to cost less, says Trai

 Long-distance domestic telephone (STD) calls are set to become cheaper as telecom regulator Trai on Tuesday reduced the network charge that one operator pays to another for carrying the call by about 50 per cent to 35 paise a minute. Carriage charges play an important role in determining the long distance (STD) tariffs.

“The authority has reduced the ceiling of the domestic carriage charge to 35 paisa per minute from the existing 65 paisa per minute. This should also reduce STD call rates,” Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) Secretary Sudhir Gupta said here.

Telecom operators pay domestic carriage charge when their customers make an STD call on the network of another company. The STD calls are transmitted across the country using the network of the National Long Distance operators (NLDOs).

Trai will review these charges again in 2017-18. The regulator on Monday had fixed termination charges on calls made from landline and reduced mobile termination charge from 20 paise per minute to 14 paise a minute.