Concerns Raised in Parliament Over Prepaid Recharge Validity and 28-Day Mobile Plans

Written by Intern Rency Gomes || Team Allycaral 

Concerns affecting India’s prepaid mobile users were raised in Parliament, highlighting issues related to recharge validity, incoming calls and the structure of 28-day recharge plans.

It was pointed out that prepaid customers make up nearly 90 percent of India’s approximately 125 crore mobile users. The issue raised focused on the difficulties faced by users when their recharge validity expires.

While stopping outgoing calls after a recharge expires may be understandable, concerns were raised over the practice of blocking incoming calls and SMS as well. Once the validity ends, users may become unreachable, and even essential messages such as bank OTPs may not be delivered. In emergency or urgent situations, this could leave a person completely cut off from communication.

Several demands were proposed to address the issue. One suggestion was that incoming calls and SMS should continue for at least one year after the last recharge so that essential communication is not disrupted. Another demand was that mobile numbers should not be deactivated for at least three years after the last recharge.

It was also proposed that telecom operators introduce a low-cost “incoming only” plan for users who simply need to keep their number active for essential calls, OTPs and access to government services.

The issue of 28-day recharge plans being marketed as “monthly” plans was also raised. It was pointed out that if a plan is described as monthly, it should ideally follow the calendar month of 30 or 31 days.

Because of the 28-day cycle, consumers effectively pay for 13 recharges in a year, which totals 364 days. It was suggested that telecom operators align their recharge plans with actual calendar months to ensure fairness and transparency for consumers.

The matter emphasised that mobile phones today have become an essential service and that prepaid users should receive fair and transparent pricing without confusing terms or conditions.