TRAI begins phase-wise rollout of 1601 series for service and transactional calls

Hyderabad: The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has initiated the phase-wise implementation of the 1601-series numbers for service and transactional calls made by entities in sectors other than banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI) and government.

TRAI has issued a direction for the use of the 1601 series by eligible entities in non-BFSI sectors. The move follows the widespread adoption of the 1600-series for service and transactional calls by BFSI entities, which, according to TRAI, has provided valuable experience for extending the trusted numbering framework to other sectors.

The regulator said a separate series has been designated for non-BFSI and non-government entities considering the critical and sensitive nature of communications made by BFSI and government organisations. The objective is to avoid mixing important financial and government voice calls with service and transactional calls from other sectors.

Based on consultations with stakeholders, TRAI has decided to cover utilities, courier and logistics sectors under Phase I of the 1601-series rollout.

The series will initially be allocated to eligible entities in the utilities sector, including electricity distribution companies, water utilities, city gas distribution companies, LPG distribution entities and other utility service providers.

The logistics and courier category will cover courier companies, express logistics companies, parcel delivery service providers, and freight and logistics service providers engaged in the delivery of consignments.

The 1601-series numbers will be allocated directly to eligible entities and not to intermediaries or aggregators, following verification by telecom service providers (TSPs).

TRAI said the distinct numbering identity is expected to help combat impersonation by fraudsters who use ordinary 10-digit numbers while falsely claiming to represent legitimate businesses. It will also enable consumers to more easily identify legitimate service and transactional calls and strengthen trust in voice-based communications.

Under the direction, TSPs have been asked to complete the migration and onboarding of eligible Phase-I entities within 90 days of the order’s issuance.

TSPs will also be required to verify the eligibility of entities before assigning 1601-series numbers and obtain an undertaking that the numbers will be used exclusively for service and transactional voice calls. The numbers cannot be used for promotional voice calls by any entity.