Telecom companies must give 24x7 consumer support: Trai

NEW DELHI: Telecom companies will now have to provide 24x7 consumer support through complaint centres, instead of their existing 16-hour arrangement. Those failing to comply with the new rules will face steep fines of upto Rs 20 lakh.The time limit for filing an appeal following disposal of a complaint has also been halved from 30 days to 15. Consumers will now be able to file appeals through the service provider's mobile app or portal in addition to the existing channels of email, post, in person to ensure faster resolution of appeal. The appellate authority will have to decide an appeal within 15 days of receiving the same.The new rules come in force with Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) Monday issuing 'Telecom Consumers Complaint Redressal (4th Amendment) Regulations, 2026' applicable to internet service providers having more than 10,000 subscribers.You use AI every day. Now get your AI Quotient. Take the AIQ test.