The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) released the Telecommunication Interconnection (Third Amendment) Regulations, 2026, effective from 1 January 2027, to modernise telecom network interconnection and improve seamless communication.

About Interconnection:

• Refers to technical, operational and commercial arrangements connecting different telecom networks to enable seamless exchange of communication traffic.
• Legal Basis: Section 11(1)(b) of the TRAI Act, 1997 empowers TRAI to regulate interconnection between service providers.

Key Provisions of the Amendment:

• LSA-level Interconnection: Shifts from Long Distance Charging Area (LDCA) and Short Distance Charging Area (SDCA) to Licensed Service Area (LSA)-level interconnection.

• Traffic Migration: Existing traffic at LDCA/SDCA-level Points of Interconnection (POIs) will be migrated to LSA-level POIs within three years.

• IP-based Interconnection: All new interconnections must be IP-based, while existing E1/TDM-based POIs must migrate to IP-based systems within three years.

• Capacity Augmentation: Establishes a framework for determining call-handling capacity based on concurrent sessions and link bandwidth.

• POI Surrender: Introduces a separate procedure for voluntary surrender of POIs due to operational requirements.

• Bank Guarantees: Extends the reassessment interval and validity of bank guarantees from six months to twelve months.

• Delayed Payments: Permits mutually agreed interest on delayed interconnection payments, capped at SBI’s one-year MCLR + 2%.

• Reporting Requirements: Mandates reporting on traffic migration and transition to IP-based interconnection.

• Financial Disincentives: Introduces a graded framework for regulatory violations.

Significance:

• Improves bandwidth efficiency, call quality and network reliability.
• Reduces latency and simplifies traffic routing.
• Promotes transparency, non-discrimination and fair competition.
• Strengthens regulatory certainty and operational efficiency in the telecom sector.

The amendment marks an important step towards a modern, IP-based and efficient telecom ecosystem, strengthening seamless connectivity, fair competition and regulatory transparency in India’s telecommunications sector.