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India's Telecom Circles / Service AreasFor a variety of purposes, India's telephony regulators have divided the country up into a number of regions, called 'Telecom Circles' or 'Telecom Service Areas'. You will see reference to these telecom circles in various situations. For example: when looking for telephone numbers or telephone directories you will generally need to search by telecom circle. Or when reviewing telephone service plans and coverage areas for the telephone companies, you will see these may vary by telecom circle. Also, if a telephone company wants to operate in a specific telecom circle, they must purchase a license for that circle, usually through an auction process. At present, there are 22 Telecom Circles or Service Areas. They are broken down into 4 groups: 'metro circles' and then 'A', 'B', and 'C' circles. The 'metro' circles cover very dense population centers in the very largest Indian cities: Delhi, Kolkata, and Mumbai. The 'A', 'B', and 'C' circles cover various geographic territories of varying population sizes. 'A' circles are the largest in terms of population coverage. 'C' circles contain the smallest population. The borders of the circles roughly correspond to the borders of the Indian states -- but there are exceptions. For instance, some smaller states are folded into larger neighboring states, some other smaller states are combined together to form one circle, etc. Note that as of a July, 2007 memo from the India Department of Telecommunications, 'telecom circles' are now officially called 'telecom service areas'. Nevertheless, the terminology 'telecom circles' is still widely used.
India's Telecom Circles / Telecom Service AreasHere is a list of India's 22 telecom circles, including Metro, A, B, and C category service areas. Officially, telecom circles are now called telecom 'service areas', but both terms used to mean the same thing. The circles listed below are the officially recognized circles as stated by the India Department of Telecommunications. India telephone companies may or may not conform to this exact usage. India Telecom Circles-- click headers to sort by column --
Population coverage is estimated in Millions. * The Tamil Nadu circle now includes the Chennai Metro Circle. Until 2007, the Chennai Metro Circle was broken out separately. Coverage Areas for India's Telecom CirclesThe coverage of India's 22 telecom circles mostly corresponds to the borders of the India states. However, there are numerous and varying types of exceptions. The listings below break out the coverage areas for each telecom circle showing areas that are both included and excluded from the circle. Metro Circles'Metro' circles are broken out only for the countries 3 largest cities. Until fairly recently, there were actually 4 metro circles, including a 4th for Chennai. But then a few years ago, the Chennai metro was merged into the Tamil Nadu telecom circle, leaving the current 3.
Includes: Excludes: Includes: Excludes: Includes: Excludes: Chennai Metro used to be a fourth Metro Circle, but it was folded into Tamil Nadu Circle in 2007. Nonetheless, the Chennai Metro is still often referred to and data continues to be tracked on it's performance. A Circles'A' circles cover areas that contain one or more very large cities, e.g., Bangalore in Karnataka, Chennai in Tamil Nadu.
Includes: Excludes: Includes: Excludes: Includes: Excludes: Includes: Excludes: Includes: Excludes: * Tamil Nadu telecom circle now includes the Chennai Metro area which used to be a separate standalone telecom circle. That said, Chennai Metro Telecom Circle continues to be used as a subcircle within Tamil Nadu. When used, it refers to the areas served by Chennai Telephones, the Maraimalai Nagar Export Promotion Zone (MPEZ), and the Minzur and Mahabalipuram Exchanges B Circles'B' circles cover areas that contain mid-sized urban areas and larger towns.
Includes: Excludes: Includes: Excludes: Includes: Excludes: Includes: Excludes: Includes: Excludes: Includes: Excludes: Includes: Excludes: Includes: Excludes: C Circles'C' circles cover areas that are largely rural.
Includes: Excludes: Includes: Excludes: Includes: Excludes: Includes: Excludes: Includes: Excludes: Includes: Excludes: --------------------- Source: India Department of Telecommunications (pdf) Maps of India's Telecom CirclesHere are several maps of India's telecom circles from authoritative sources. India Telecom Circles Map - Light Reading Asia
Source: Light Reading Asia - A Guide to India's Telecom Market Telecom Circles AbbreviationsAbbreviations are commonly used to refer to India's telecom circles. Most often the official ISO or UN location code for the state or city is used, but other variations are also fairly common: Telecom Circle Abbreviations-- click headers to sort by column --
Note: The Chennai Metro is technically no longer a separate telecom circle having been folded into the Tamil Nadu Circle in 2007. However, it is still often referred to. Additional Telecom Circles InformationFor more information on India's telecom circles / service areas, please visit these sources:
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