National Numbering Plan: The Power of 10 Digits

Advantages of New Scheme

The uniform 10-digit national numbering scheme will solve ambiguities of non-uniform number length used for local as well as long-distance calls.

Complexity of number analysis and dropping and addition of digits will be eliminated, thereby increasing call-handling efficiency and ease in database maintenance.

In the present scenario, up to the four significant digits get blocked to identify 320 Level I and Level II TAXs to address 7,500 STD codes, thus causing huge wastage of numbers. The number availability in TRAI proposal is restricted to 500 million for basic and 500 million for cellular and other services. In contrast, the new proposal is capable of allotting 6 billion numbers for access providers even after fulfilling number requirements for other services.

Basic Plan Considerations
	Plan should be uniform, simple and user-friendly
	Use minimum number length for ease of dialing
	Maximum utilization of numbers should be aimed
	Numbering should simplify the process of translation, signaling and routing
	Number portability between operations/services
	Support to all existing services and services in the road map
	Sufficient spare number for future
	Unique number for each individual of the country to be used as his/her telecom address
	Value-added services
	The cost of change over should be limited to the affordability of the country
	The change should be adaptable within a reasonable time-frame and should provide equitable access to all operators to the national number asset

The manual procedures of database maintenance in different TAX exchanges for digit analysis and addition or deletion of digits for route selection is a serious bottleneck and creates immense customer dissatisfaction. In the new proposal, call-routing database should preferably be controlled through a centralized NMS.

However, it is not easy to implement the suggested changes in a very short span of time across the country. A better approach will be to fully adopt these changes in all new-generation electronic exchanges. For older exchanges, a separate migration plan has to be worked out. And for convenience of migration, both the plans may have to work simultaneously for some time.

Amitabh Mukhopadhyaya chief technical officer Fascel (Gujarat)