The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has introduced new consumer grievance redressal rules requiring telecom operators and covered internet service providers to maintain complaint centres around the clock. Under the Telecom Consumers Complaint Redressal (Fourth Amendment) Regulations, 2026, companies can use artificial intelligence agents, automated systems and human representatives to provide support. However, human assistance must remain available for at least 16 hours every day. Customers must also be informed when they are communicating with an AI agent, and technology-based support must operate under appropriate human oversight.
The revised framework represents a major update to India’s telecom complaint-handling system, which had not undergone a comparable overhaul since 2014. Alongside round-the-clock support, TRAI has introduced financial penalties for improperly handled complaints and appeals, shortened the consumer appeal period and expanded digital complaint-filing options. The regulator’s objective is to make it easier for customers to report service problems and hold telecom companies accountable for unresolved or incorrectly closed grievances.
TRAI Introduces 24-Hour AI-Enabled Complaint Centres
Under the amended regulations, telecom operators must ensure that their complaint centres operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Previously, complaint centres were generally required to provide support for 16 hours daily, between 8 am and midnight. The new framework extends the availability of complaint-handling services to the entire day.
Companies can meet this requirement through a combination of:
- Human customer-care representatives.
- Automated complaint-handling systems.
- AI-powered customer-support agents.
- Other technology-based customer-service solutions.
However, the regulator has made an important distinction between automated availability and human assistance. While AI systems can handle customer interactions outside normal working hours, human representatives must remain accessible for at least 16 hours daily.
This means telecom companies cannot rely entirely on chatbots or automated voice systems to satisfy the new requirements.
Customers must know when they are speaking to AI
TRAI has also introduced transparency requirements for AI-based customer support.
Whenever a customer interacts with an AI agent, the service provider must notify the consumer that the interaction is taking place with an artificial intelligence system.
The technology must also operate with appropriate human oversight. This requirement is intended to prevent automated systems from becoming an obstacle when consumers need assistance with complicated billing disputes, network failures or other unresolved complaints.
For telecom companies, the change creates an opportunity to automate routine customer-service requests while retaining human support for cases requiring additional investigation.
Penalties for Improperly Handling Consumer Complaints
One of the most significant changes is the introduction of financial disincentives for complaints and appeals that are disposed of in violation of the amended regulations.
| Violation | Financial disincentive |
|---|---|
| Improper disposal of a complaint | ₹1,000 per violation |
| Improper disposal of an appeal | ₹5,000 per violation |
| Maximum penalty | ₹20 lakh per quarter per licensed or authorised service area |
The ₹20 lakh limit applies per quarter for each licensed or authorised service area, rather than representing a single nationwide cap for an entire telecom operator.
The rules also introduce penalties for failing to submit quarterly performance reports on time. These can reach ₹5,000 per day for the first 15 days of delay and ₹20,000 per day thereafter, subject to a maximum of ₹10 lakh per instance per service area.
The financial disincentives are designed to discourage service providers from closing complaints without properly addressing the underlying problem.
For customers, this is particularly relevant when a telecom operator marks a complaint as resolved even though the network, billing or service issue continues.
Consumers Get Only 15 Days to Appeal
TRAI has reduced the time available for consumers to challenge the disposal of a complaint.
Previously, customers had 30 days to file an appeal after a complaint was disposed of. Under the new regulations, the appeal window has been reduced to 15 days.
The appellate authority must also decide an appeal within 15 days of receiving it and communicate its decision within three days after disposal.
| Complaint process | Earlier framework | Amended framework |
|---|---|---|
| Consumer appeal filing period | 30 days | 15 days |
| Time for appellate authority to decide | Revised framework specifies 15 days | 15 days |
| Communication of appellate decision | — | Within 3 days of disposal |
| Complaint registration | Existing channels | Existing channels plus mobile applications |
The shorter timeline is intended to accelerate grievance resolution. However, consumers will need to monitor complaint closures more carefully because they now have less time to challenge an unsatisfactory decision.
Complaints Can Be Registered Through Mobile Apps
The amended regulations expand the channels through which customers can raise complaints, submit appeals and request services.
Consumers can now use a service provider’s mobile application in addition to existing channels such as complaint centres, websites and web portals.
The revised framework also standardises interactive voice response system (IVRS) menus.
Complaint centres must provide clear options for:
- Registering a complaint.
- Filing an appeal.
- Making a service-related query.
- Connecting with a human representative.
- Requesting a callback.
Customers must receive a docket number acknowledging their complaint, along with updates until the grievance is resolved.
The rules also require service providers to use SMS and email for relevant complaint-status communications.
Telecom operators must provide support in English, Hindi and at least one additional official language applicable to the relevant service area, as prescribed by the regulations.
TRAI Complaints Have Increased to 73,081
The regulatory changes come as complaints received directly by TRAI have increased.
According to figures reported alongside the amendment, the regulator received 73,081 complaints during FY2025-26, compared with 55,978 in FY2024-25 and 44,733 in FY2023-24.
| Financial year | Complaints received by TRAI |
|---|---|
| FY2023-24 | 44,733 |
| FY2024-25 | 55,978 |
| FY2025-26 | 73,081 |
The number of complaints increased by approximately 63% between FY2023-24 and FY2025-26.
The increase highlights the importance of improving customer-service systems as India’s telecom and broadband markets expand. Consumers increasingly depend on mobile connectivity and fixed broadband for digital payments, remote work, education, entertainment and business operations.
TRAI’s new rules are intended to improve the accountability of telecom companies and make complaint resolution more transparent.
New Oversight Committees and Customer Feedback Surveys
The amendment also strengthens monitoring of telecom companies’ complaint-handling performance.
Service providers must conduct an online feedback survey after closing a complaint or appeal. The survey will use a five-point satisfaction scale, and results must be published quarterly.
Companies must also submit quarterly performance reports covering complaint volumes, appeals, pending cases, disposal times and customer feedback.
These reports must be placed before the company’s chief executive officer or board of directors, bringing grievance redressal performance under senior management oversight.
TRAI has also replaced the existing advisory committees with Consumer Grievance Redressal Oversight Committees. These committees will review complaint trends and identify systemic problems in service providers’ grievance-handling processes.
The changes are intended to make customer complaints a matter of operational accountability rather than simply a customer-care function.
Which Telecom Companies Must Follow the New Rules?
The amended framework covers telecom service providers and internet service providers falling within TRAI’s regulatory requirements.
For ISPs, the regulations apply to providers with more than 10,000 subscribers at the end of the preceding financial year. Smaller ISPs with 10,000 or fewer subscribers are exempt from these mandatory provisions.
The framework also includes satellite service providers. Over-the-top (OTT) communication services remain outside TRAI’s jurisdiction under these particular complaint-redressal rules.
The regulator has introduced a phased implementation schedule:
| Implementation stage | Timeline after Gazette publication |
|---|---|
| General provisions | 30 days |
| Oversight committees, surveys and quarterly reporting | 60 days |
| 24×7 complaint centres, revised IVRS and digital support requirements | 90 days |
The phased approach gives companies time to update their customer-service infrastructure, software systems and internal complaint-handling procedures.
The Bigger Picture
TRAI’s amendment reflects the growing role of artificial intelligence in customer service, but it also recognises the limitations of fully automated support. AI agents can handle repetitive requests, collect information and provide round-the-clock assistance. However, complicated disputes involving incorrect bills, prolonged network failures or service interruptions may still require human intervention.
For telecom operators, the new framework will involve additional technology, staffing and compliance requirements. The regulator has allowed companies flexibility in how they provide round-the-clock support, but they must meet the minimum human-assistance requirement and remain accountable for complaint outcomes.
Looking Ahead
The effectiveness of the new regulations will depend on how telecom companies implement them. Customers will need to see whether AI-enabled complaint centres actually reduce waiting times, provide accurate information and connect unresolved cases to human representatives. The new penalties and reporting requirements could also encourage companies to take complaint resolution more seriously.
For consumers, the biggest practical changes are round-the-clock access to complaint centres, more digital filing options and a shorter appeal window. As the rules are introduced in phases, attention will turn to whether operators can improve customer experience while complying with TRAI’s updated requirements.
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