Till mid-90s India was having only BSNL land line phones. There were different schemes to get phone like OYT (own your telephone), Non OYT, and Priority allotment for doctors etc. Further every year BSNL used to release bulk telephone directory in which all the phone numbers with complete names and addresses printed alphabetically and legibly for anybody’s access! Only problem is waiting period, which was in years. I did apply for my Non OYT connection in 1989 and got the connection by 1994!
India’s first cellular service launched in Calcutta on July 31, 1995. West Bengal Chief Minister made India’s first cellular phone call, inaugurating Modi Telstra’s MobileNet service in Calcutta. The company, a joint venture between India’s Modi Group and Australian telecom giant Telstra, was one of the eight licensed to provide cellular services, two for each of India’s major cities.
The mobile phone came as a blessing in disguise – to track any body and pass instant communication- passing the bug. No more excuses of delayed receipt of info as a reason for no action!
I was the lucky one to get my Nokia through RPG (the service provider who later merged with Airtel) within months through my company, as the bosses sitting in Delhi would like to be in constant touch with their sales team across country. The first phone I received was double the size of today’s TV remote and weighed around 450gms! It was difficult to snug it in pant or shirt packet as it was bulky, nor any body wants to. Everybody carry the phone in their hand and placed it on the table with very proud feeling to announce their arrival!
First call I made was to my boss to inform that I also joined the bandwagon and thrilled on its instant connectivity from the mid of the road in Chennai to Delhi and that too with reasonable clarity. The only disadvantage felt was 10 digit numbers and the need to dial area code for local landlines. Those difficulties vanished once the numbers were saved on the phone. Everything was ok till I get the first month bill, which was a whopping Rs 1100 (which should be considered as 11000 of today). For every minute of local call I was charged Rs 16. Much higher was charged for STD calls and the costliest calls were those I made with my bosses sitting in Delhi. Though company paid it I felt very guilty for the abnormal cost and reduced calls in subsequent months. In fact HR came out with dos and don’ts for reducing mobile cost!
This is where India discovered ‘missing call’ concept I suppose which is still making it rounds even at current rate of 30 paisa per minute.
