The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has released the Draft Telecom Consumer Protection (Thirteenth Amendment) Regulation, 2026. TRAI had earlier issued Telecom Consumer Protection (twelfth Amendment) Regulation, 2024 wherein the authority mandated that every telecom service provider shall offer at least one special tariff voucher (STV) exclusively for voice and SMS. Subsequent to this, it is observed that only a few STVs are being offered for voice and SMS.
Thereafter, several representations have been received, expressing a need for shorter-duration Voice and SMS only packs. Hence, the authority considers it necessary to address this issue by mandating that for every unique validity period offered under STVs with voice, SMS and data, the service provider shall also offer a corresponding STV exclusively for voice and SMS. Such STVs shall be priced with largely proportional reduction in tariff.
Further, stakeholders are requested to provide their written comments by April 28, 2026.