MNP to start from November 25

NEW DELHI, INDIA: The commencement of Mobile Number Portability (MNP) has delayed from the scheduled date of November 1, 2010, to November 25, 2010 when it starts partially in Haryana circle.

“The date has been decided. We will start it on November 25 from Haryana,” said R Chandrashekhar, secretary, Department of Telecom in an interaction with CIOL on sidelines of an event.

DoT has planned to implement MNP in 11 circles, including Haryana, by the end of this year. This partial implementation of MNP will take place in circle where Syniverse Technologies has the license. The other 10 circles where Syniverse Technologies has license include Delhi, Mumbai, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh (East) and Uttar Pradesh (West).

For the purpose, DoT had selected Syniverse Technologies and MNP Interconnection Telecom Solutions, a joint venture of Telcordia Technologies.

Syniverse was given license for implementing MNP in 11 circles and MNP Interconnection Telecom Solutions was selected for the rest of the circles.

Due to security concerns raised by Ministry of Home Affairs, MNP Interconnection Telecom Solutions has not received clearance from Foreign Investment Permission Board (FIPB).

Chandrashekhar, during this interaction, mentioned that any decision for implementation of MNP in the rest of the circles will be taken after final decision of FIPB on MNP Interconnection Telecom Solutions.

“Once we get to know the final decision on MNP Interconnection Telecom Solutions, we will decided on rolling out MNP in rest of the country,” said Chandrashekhar.

MNP will allow a subscriber to retain his mobile telephone number when he moves from one telecom service provider to another irrespective of the mobile technology or from one cellular mobile technology to another of the same telecom service provider. This means that even a GSM subscribers can shift to CDMA service and vice versa.