The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) on Friday released its new recommendations for a 'Unified Numbering Plan' to ensure adequate numbering resources for fixed line and mobile sources. TRAI has recommended using 11-digit long mobile numbers instead of the existing 10 digit ones.

According to TRAI, “Switching from 10 to 11 digits with the first digit for mobile number as ‘9’ would give a total capacity of 10 billion numbers. With the current policy of allotment after 70% utilisation, this would suffice till India has 7 billion connections.”

Another recommendation from TRAI is that mandating "0" to be prefixed for calling mobile numbers from landline numbers. There will not be any change in calling landline to landline, mobile to landline, or mobile to mobile calls.

The dongles and other devices like data cards are currently having 10 digit numbering scheme. Now, TRAI has suggested the 10-digit numbering would be shifted to 13 digits.

TRAI wrote in its recommendations that all the free sub-levels in levels ‘2’, ‘3’, ‘4’, and ‘6’, can also be used for mobile numbers. This will let the mobile operators to use the underutilised numbers for mobile phone connections.

TRAI said that, “Consolidated list of short codes should be issued at the earliest." TRAI mentioned the there are nearly 1.2 billion telephone numbers with a tele density of 87.47 percent and the number of mobile subscribers are also increasing.