TRAI appoints agencies to check service quality

NEW DELHI: In a bid to ensure that telcos deliver quality services, sector regulator TRAI has appointed independent agencies, on a zonal basis, for undertaking surveys, for carrying out audits that will asses the quality of service provided by fixedline, cellular and broadband service providers.

These agencies will be mandated to check if service providers are adhering to the ‘Telecom Consumers Protection and Redressal of Grievances Regulations’, which was issued by TRAI last year.

The survey will be undertaken by IMRB International in the North and South Zone, Market Pulse in West Zone and Voluntary Organization in the Interest of Consumer Education (VOICE) in the North Zone. The audit and assessment of Quality of Service will be undertaken by IMRB International in the North, South and East Zone and TCIL in West Zone, TRAI announced on Tuesday.

The survey shall enable TRAI to evaluate the effectiveness of implementation of ‘Telecom Consumers Protection and Redressal of Grievances Regulations, 2007’ by service providers and give fair idea about the quality of service perceived by consumers, the regulator said.

Also, the audit and assessment undertaken by independent agencies will enable the Authority to have independent assessment of the quality of service provided by service providers, the regulator added.

In a bid to clear all issues with regard to the appointment of independent agencies, TRAI had held a meeting with all the service providers, survey and audit agencies on 8th January, 2008.

“The meeting was to remove any ambiguity in understanding the procedure of survey/audit, collection of the data, calculation of the parameters etc. This meeting was attended by all the basic and cellular mobile service providers and major internet service providers providing broadband service,” TRAI said.

The work on survey and audit will commence immediately. “Survey agencies would be approaching the consumers as per the sample design for recording their views on the grievance redressal mechanism provided by service providers and on their perception of quality of service on various parameters. The authority requests the consumers to extend all cooperation to the representatives of survey agencies who may approach them with the questionnaire,” the regulator said.