Prepaid mobile users will get greater choice over how often and what they recharge for after the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India amended consumer protection rules to expand 30-day and voice-and-SMS-only plans. The changes address two longstanding complaints — the prevalence of 28-day packs that can effectively require 13 recharges a year and the limited availability of cheaper options for consumers who do not need mobile data.
TRAI notified the Telecom Consumers Protection (13th Amendment) Regulations, 2026, on September 22 after a consultation exercise that received 1,132 responses. Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha, who had raised the issue in Parliament earlier this year, welcomed the changes Sunday and said they would particularly benefit senior citizens, low-income consumers and people who primarily use their phones for calls.
30-day recharge option
A key element of the amended framework is greater availability of plans with a 30-day validity as well as an option that renews on the same date every month. The latter addresses the discrepancy created by 28-day plans marketed as monthly recharges, under which a consumer recharging continuously can end up paying for 13 cycles over 364 days.
Chadha said he had raised precisely this issue in Parliament on March 11, questioning why consumers should have to recharge 13 times when there are only 12 months in a year. He had sought 30-day validity plans as part of wider changes intended to give prepaid users more flexibility.
The same-date renewal option is designed around the calendar rather than a fixed 28-day cycle. Where the corresponding date does not exist in a particular month, the validity framework provides for renewal on the last day of that month.
No data needed, no need to pay
The second major change concerns subscribers who primarily need voice calling and SMS services but do not require mobile internet. TRAI has expanded requirements for voice-and-SMS-only Special Tariff Vouchers, or STVs, giving such consumers alternatives to plans in which data is bundled into the price.
Telecom operators will have to offer corresponding voice-and-SMS-only vouchers for validity periods of 30 days or less wherever bundled voice, SMS and data STVs of those durations are available. The price of the no-data voucher will have to be appropriately reduced to account for the exclusion of mobile data.
This could particularly benefit feature-phone users and consumers who keep a mobile connection primarily for incoming and outgoing calls. It could also provide a cheaper option for people who rely on home or workplace Wi-Fi and have little need for bundled mobile data.
TRAI said the existing market had not produced enough shorter-duration voice-and-SMS-only options despite an earlier regulatory intervention. Available no-data plans were largely concentrated around longer validity periods, limiting choice for consumers unable or unwilling to pay a larger amount upfront.
Monthly voice-only option mandated
Under the amended regulations, operators will also have to provide a voice-and-SMS-only voucher that can be renewed on the same date every month. This effectively combines the two consumer demands — predictable monthly validity and the ability to avoid paying for unwanted data.
The rules also require corresponding voice-and-SMS-only options for certain other validity periods offered by operators through bundled plans. This means consumers should have a broader range of no-data recharge choices rather than being restricted to one or two long-duration packs.
The changes do not mean every existing 28-day plan will disappear. Instead, the regulatory framework expands the alternatives operators must make available, allowing consumers to choose between different validity periods and service combinations depending on their requirements.
Chadha calls it ‘constructive politics’
Chadha welcomed the decision as an example of concerns raised by consumers reaching Parliament and eventually translating into regulatory action. He said people had approached him over limited and inflexible recharge choices, prompting him to raise the matter earlier this year.
The MP described the outcome as an example of “constructive politics”, arguing that elected representatives should focus on everyday issues affecting household expenses and consumer convenience. His intervention, however, was part of a wider regulatory process undertaken by TRAI, which issued draft regulations and sought views from consumers, telecom companies and other stakeholders before finalising the amendment.
More choice for prepaid users
The changes are significant in a telecom market where prepaid connections account for the overwhelming majority of mobile subscriptions. Even relatively small differences in recharge validity or pricing can therefore affect hundreds of millions of consumers.
For users, the central change is choice. Those who want data-inclusive plans can continue buying them, while subscribers who primarily need calls and messages will have more opportunities to choose cheaper no-data alternatives. Consumers seeking a genuinely monthly recharge cycle will also have an option linked to 30 days or the same calendar date rather than relying exclusively on 28-day packs.