Call Drops, Spam Calls Under Scrutiny | MoS Communications Pemmasani Outlines Strict New Measures

In an exclusive interview with India Today, Dr. Chandra Sekhar Pemmasani, MoS for Communications, addressed concerns around call drops, spam calls, and digital fraud. He said monitoring has improved from BTS to cell level, and outages now require mandatory reporting. To ensure accountability, discussions are underway for stricter penalties. On spam and fraud calls, platforms like Sanchar Saathi, a digital intelligence system with data from 600 entities, and a pilot Financial Fraud Risk Estimator are in action. Over 70,000 accounts linked to WhatsApp scams have been blocked using AI tools. The government aims to balance innovation with strong safeguards.