KATHMANDU, Oct 27 : Nepal Telecom Authority (NTA) is reviewing the existing telephone numbering plan in a bid to support growth and development of the telecommunications sector.
As per the new National Numbering Plan (NNP), all telephone lines, including landlines, in the country will have 10 digits.
At present, PSTN landlines and Limited Mobility (LM) phones have nine digits including the area code. [break]
According to the plan, the 10-digit PSTN number will start from 20, LM phones like UTL phones will start from 24. Similarly, telephone numbers of Rural Telecommunication Services (RTS) will start from 29, fixed wireless phones will start from 22 and IP Telephony will start from 21.
All mobile phone numbers will remain unchanged. However, they will have two-digit operator code.
Currently, Nepal Telecom has been using 4, 5 and 6 as operator code. Similarly, Ncell has been using 0 and 1 as operator code while Smart Telecom recently received 9 as its operator code.
“Under existing system, we have only four operator codes remaining. It will be difficult for us to assign codes to new operators,” Min Prasad Aryal, deputy director-engineering at NTA, said. “Hence, we have decided to go for two-digit operator code.”
Existing single-digit operator code allows operators to distribute 10 million lines from each code. With double-digit codes, operators will be able to distribute more lines.
Kailash Prasad Neupane, spokesperson of NTA, said the NNP will be circulated to concerned stakeholders for discussion until November 24. “We will make necessary amendment to the NNP as per the suggestions received from the stakeholders,” Neupane said, adding that the telecom sector regulator will give the operators six months to switch to the new numbering plan.
“The new numbering plan is likely to come into implementation from the beginning of next fiscal year,” said Neupane.
NTA has argued that the new numbering plan is flexible and is important as new operators will easily get the code and the unused operator codes will not be occupied. The regulator is also preparing to charge the operators for the numbers allocated to operators by separating them into commercial lines and non-commercial lines.
Aryal said that certain amount will be charged for numbers allocated after in-depth study in order to prevent hoarding of numbers and to encourage efficient use of numbering resources in line with international practices.
In case of short codes, like VAS service providers, NTA plans to use initial number 3 while for other purpose it plans to use 1 as initial number for optimum utilization of short codes. A three to six digit short code will be issued for different services and purposes.
BOX: Type approval certification procedure relaxed
Nepal Telecommunications Authority (NTA) on Sunday made public the consultation paper on ´Type Approval Procedure of Radio Telecommunications CPEs (Customer-Provided Equipments)´.
The paper has been made public for open consultation till January 23.
“At a time when mobile density is increasing and number of cheap handsets entering the country, the NTA has relaxed certification procedure until a new provision is put in place,” Ananda Raj Khanal, acting chief of NTA, said.
Earlier, it was mandatory for all mobile sets to receive type approval certification (TAC) before they are sold in the market.
As per the consultation paper, traders should make commitment to provide warranty/guarantee on their products, set up repair/service centers and provide compensation for injury caused by faulty handsets.
The new document has also set the benchmark values for battery parameter such as nominal voltage, maximum and minimum charge voltage and receiver sensitivity and specific absorption rate of handsets, among others.