M A I N   N E W S

STD rates slashed by over 60 pc

New Delhi, December 28
In another bonanza for telecom users, the government today announced slashing of long-distance (STD) rates by more than 60 per cent, a move that will result in Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) losing about Rs 3,000 crore in six months.

New STD rates
DISTANCE SLABS (KM)	Peak Rates (Rs/minute)		Minimum non-peak Rates (Rs/minute)
	Present	Proposed	Present	Proposed
50-200	4.80	2.40	1.20	1.20
200-500	11.60	4.80	3.00	2.40
500-1000	17.56	9.00	4.50	4.5
Over/1000	24.00	9.00	6.00	4.5

Announcing the new rates, Communication Minister Pramod Mahajan said the revised tariffs would be effective from January 14 next year.

Mr Mahajan told reporters that peak-hour STD rates for distances between 50 km and 200 km would be halved to Rs 2.40.

An estimated increase of up to 17 per cent in long-distance call traffic in six months would help the BSNL to overcome the dip, Mr Mahajan said.

The peak-hour (9 a.m. to 8 p.m.) tariff for the distance slab of 200-500 km would come down from Rs 11.60 to Rs 4.80 while non-peak hour tariff has been brought down from Rs 3 to Rs 2.40.

The non-peak hour (8 p.m. to 9 a.m.) tariff for distances up to 200 km remains unchanged at Rs 1.20.

The BSNL will charge a uniform STD rate of Rs 9 for distances of over 500 km during the peak hours instead of earlier slabs of 500-1000 km and over 1000 km for which the present charges are Rs 17.56 and Rs 24, respectively.

The non-peak hour tariff for 500-1000 km would be Rs 4.50 and for distances above this would be Rs 6.

Mr Mahajan said with the introduction of these rates, calls all over the country would cost much less than what was being paid by the customers. For example, a call from Delhi to Mumbai will now cost Rs 9 per minute only as compared to Rs 24 per minute at the prevailing rate.

Similarly, a call from Delhi to Port Blair will cost Rs 9 per minute only. Similar charges will apply to calls from Delhi to Kolkata, Chennai and Thiruvananthapuram.

A call from Delhi to Ambala will now cost Rs 2.40 per minute compared to the prevailing charges of Rs 4.80 per minute. Far-flung areas like the northeastern states will be especially benefited by this change, Mr Mahajan added. PTI, UNI