Industry sources said on Wednesday that the private cellular operators' roaming rates would continue to remain costlier as compared with the BSNL because the reduction has only been made in the airtime charges on calls.
On Tuesday, the private operators had brought down the roaming airtime rates to Rs 1.99 from Rs 3 per minute.
There has been no change in two other charges of IUC and surcharge payable additionally by the subscribers of private mobile subscribers. The two charges are not payable by the BSNL mobile subscribers, the sources said.
The IUC varies between 30 paise per minute and Rs 1.70 per minute and surcharge is 15 per cent of airtime, which would get reduced to 30 paise per minute from the present 45 paise, the sources said.
A private mobile customer receiving or making a STD call while roaming would have to pay Rs 3.54, Rs 3.79 and Rs 3.99 per minute for distance slabs between 50-200 kms, 200-500 kms and more than 500 kms as against Rs 4.70, Rs 4.95 and Rs 5.15 at present.
A local call during roaming would be charged at Rs 2.59 (private mobile to private mobile) and Rs 2.78 (private mobile to BSNL/MTNL mobile) as compared with the present rate of Rs 3.75 and Rs 3.94 per minute respectively.
Private mobile customers would pay Rs 2.89 for a mobile to fixed phone local call while on roaming in the four metro cities of Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai as against the present charge of Rs 4.05 per minute.