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CallDrops:TheReasonsandPossibleSolutionstoensure#NoCallDrops

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CallDrops:TheReasonsandPossibleSolutionstoensure#NoCallDrops
HomeEditorialCallDrops:TheReasonsandPossibleSolutionstoensure#NoCallDrops
ReportedbyChethanSEditorialPosted:September6,2015at4:26pm13
CalldropshavebeenplaguingIndianmobilesubscribers,particularlytheurbanpopulacefornearlyayearnow.CallDropshasbecomeanationaltopic,thanksto
campaignslike#NoCallDropsfromNetwork18.Sincethenvariousmediahouseshavejoinedthedebateandthishasresultedingrowingawarenessaboutthesubject.
ThankstotheinvolvementofDoT,TRAI,PMO,andTelecomMinistry,Indianmobilesubscriberswillhopefullyhaveasolutioninthecomingmonths.

TRAIsbenchmarkforcalldropsis<=2%i.e.,in100callsonlytwocallsorlessercandrop.Unfortunately,thisisnotthecaseandlotofcallsaredroppedeveryday.
BasedontheinformationsubmittedbyserviceproviderstoTRAI,

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In Vitro Cell
Migration Assay
Label Free, Automated
Impedance Measurement

Theinvestmentmadeinthenetworkinfrastructure(otherthanradiospectrum)inwirelessaccessservicesegmentroseby4.6%fromRs.2,02,366crorein
F.Y.201213toRs.2,11,691croreinF.Y.201314.Duringthisperiod,theminutesofusagegrewby6.8%.Clearly,investmenthasnotkeptpacewiththe
usage.
Operatorsalsohaveanunfairadvantagewithdroppedcallsfromperminuteusersascallersenduppayingforanentireminuteifacalldropsinbetween,especially
withinthefirstfewseconds.ATRAIConsultationpaper(whichisopenforcomments),proposescompensationforcalldrops.Thisistheeasiestsolution,butcanonlybe
astopgaparrangementinouropinionasthestakesinvolvedarelarger.

Analyzing Call Drops

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WhatCausesCallDrops?
Theblametiltsmoretowardstheoperatorsherethoughtheyrebuttheclaims.Theprimereasonsfordroppedcallsare:
1. Inadequatecoveragewhichcanbeduetomultiplereasons
Lackoftowerinfrastructure
Impropernetworkplanning
Nonoptimizationofnetwork
2. Overloadedcelltowersnumberofsubscribersaregrowingdaybydayandmostofthemareonsmartphones.Thenetworkcapacityissimplynotbeingramped
upatthesamepaceresultinginoverloadednetworks
3. Cityscapechangestherehavebeeninstanceswhereanewmultistoriedbuildingcomesupandtheadjacentbuildingssubscriberslosecellreception.Such
instancesareverycommonwithrapidlychangingcityscapesandcallforroutinenetworkdataanalysisfromserviceproviders.
4. Switchingbetweentowersthissituationoccurswhenapersonistravelingormovingaroundwhiletalking.IfacallhandovertakesplacefromoneBTSto
another,especiallyincaseofoverloadednetworks,therearechancesofdroppedcalls.
5. TechnicalFailuresthisisbeyondanyonescontrolandoperatorsgenerallymonitordowntimesthroughwellequippednetworkoperationcenters.
Beyondtheaboveregularreasons,inruralandsuburbs,calldropscanoccurduetosuddensignalstrengthdropsduetopowerfailureforaBTS.
Operatorsarealsoblamingspectrumshortageandstatethatthespreadofradiationfearsismakingthingsharderforthem.

SpectrumShortage
ADeloittepaperexplainstheimpactofspectrumshortagereallywell
Aspectrumshortageishighlyanalogoustoacrowdedhighway:itdoesntjuststopworkinglikeanelectricalgridthatgoesdowninastormwithnopower
toanyoneacrosswideareas,sometimeslastingfordays.Instead,thelikelyoutcomeofthepredictedshortagewillbemostintenseincities,oncertain
networks(thosewiththemostsubscribers)andinpeakwirelesshours.Userscanexpectwirelessrushhourstobecharacterizedbytwotothreetimes
asmanyfailedattemptstoconnect,threetofourtimesasmanydroppedcallsorfrozenwebbrowsing,andboth3Gand4Gspeeds5090percentlowerthan
expected.Intheworstsituations,downloadspeedsmaybeunder1Mbit/sforlengthyperiodsoftime,makingvideostreamingimpossibleandevenweb
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browsingdifficult.

Radiationfearsamajorconcernaddingtoeveryoneswoes
Activistshaveassumedfulltimerolesofspreadingcelltowerradiationfearscausingthemajoritytopanic.Duetothis,telcosarefacing

resistancefromland/buildingowners,welfareassociationstodecommissionorrelocatetowersduetothisallover
thecountry.Therehavebeenreportsofthepowersupplybeingcutoff,lackoftransparentandeasysanctionprocessfromlocalgovernmentbodiesinsomeregions.
Comingtothefactsaboutcelltowerradiation,theWHOfactsheetpublishedin2014statesthese
Alargenumberofstudieshavebeenperformedoverthelasttwodecadestoassesswhethermobilephonesposeapotentialhealthrisk.Todate,noadversehealth
effectshavebeenestablishedasbeingcausedbymobilephoneuse.
Theinternationalpooledanalysisofdatagatheredfrom13participatingcountriesfoundnoincreasedriskofgliomaormeningiomawithmobilephoneuseofmore
than10years.
WHOwillconductaformalriskassessmentofallstudiedhealthoutcomesfromradiofrequencyfieldsexposureby2016.
Beyondthat,theprecautionaryEMFsafeexposurelimitsfortheRadioFrequencyField(BaseStationEmissions)is1/10thofthesafelimitsprescribedby
ICNIRPforallareasinIndia.

TheSolutiontoensure#NoCallDrops
Despiteimplicitlimitationslikespectrumshortage,operatorsmustowntheresponsibilityandideallydeviseinnovativepracticestosolvetheCallDropsissue.Hereisa
listofwhatoperatorscanconsiderforwhichGovernmentcanpossiblylendsupport
1. Optimizethenetworksandimproveplanningapproaches
theadoptionofSelfOrganizingNetworks(SON)canmeanrealtimecapacityadjustmentsinanautomatedmanner.Thisapproachplaysakeyrolein
HetNetsi.e.,Heterogenousnetworkswheremacrocells,smallcellsetc.coexistandinterferencecancausetrouble.
ImprovedplanningmeansusageofmodernapproacheslikeGISfornetworkplanning.Inadditiontofindingthelocationfornewertowers(wherecitizens
canalsocollaborate),telcoscanuse3Dmapdatatostudychangingcityscapesandrealignthenetwork.
2. AllayRadiationFears:Withradiationscarecausingmajorconcerns,justlikeAirtelCEOreachedouttocustomers,othertelcoscantakethesameroute.Ideally
telcoscantakeacollaborativerouteanduseprint,digitalmediatospreadawareness.Thiswillnaturallyresultincitizenscomingforwardandproposinglocations
fornewertowersasitinvolvesmonetarybenefits
3. UseAnalytics:Wehaveheardaboutmultiplecases,wheresubscribershadtoescalatecalldropissuesformonthstogetanacceptableresolution.Thismustnotbe
thecase,andcustomersmustnothavetoundergohardshipstosolvecalldropissues.Throughtheuseofsophisticatedanalytics,operatorsmustbeinapositionto
assessthehealthoftheirnetworks,measurethequantumofcalldropsandaddressthemaccordingly.
4. OntheLTEfront:WithLTEofferingmorebenefitsintermsofspectralefficiency(VoLTEhasuptothreetimesmorevoiceanddatacapacitythan3GUMTS
anduptosixtimesmorethan2GGSM),telcoscanoptforfastermigration.ThiswouldalsomeanlargerCapexbutinthelongerrun,withunprecedentedlevelsof
datausagegrowthinIndia,thebetscanpayoff.Additionally,VoLTEdeploymentwouldmeannoneedtomaintainlegacyvoicenetworks.
5. TechnologieslikeWiFioffloadingmustberolledoutinafastermanner
6. Indoorcoverage:Indoorcoveragehasalwaysbeenaproblem,especiallywithhigherfrequencies.Justlikeforeignoperators,Indiantelcoscanconsideroffering
freesignalboosters.
7. Offsetpowerfailures
Operatorsneedtolookforbetter,environmentfriendlyalternativesthandieselgenerators.Thisisbeingdone,intheformsolarenergybutatareallysmall
scale.
Arobustsmallcellnetworkmightevenmeannoneedforabiggerpowersource.InarecentinterviewwithParallelWirelesscofounderRajesh,hespoke
aboutthelowpowerrequirementsofsmallcells.
8. eClearancefornewcelltowers:TheGovernment,inassociationwithTRAIorDoTcouldsetupanewsinglechannelwebsitewithappropriaterevenuesharing
model(state,localbodies)forfasterclearanceofnewcelltowers.Thiscanalsohelpreducecorruptionatlowerlevels.
9. Compensationfordroppedcalls:Thisisthelastinourlistaswebelieveitcanonlybeastopgaparrangement.Compensationbythewayofafreeminutewont
reallyservethepurposeasforacalleritwouldbeimportanttogetapointacross.Interestinglyenough,someofthebusinessusersareswitchingtothelandline
toavoidruiningaconversation.
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Storyfirstpublishedon:September6,2015at4:26pm
calldropsinIndia,reasonsforcalldrops,solutionsforcalldropsinindia
IdeasweetensthedealfornewusersonitsnetworkbyintroducinganewSTVExclusive:ReliancecommunicationsstartschargingroamingbetweenMaharashtraand
Mumbaicircle

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ChethanS
SeniorResearchAnalyst
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NEWDELHIRESIDENTSeptember8,20155:56pm,5:56PM
WhydontthetelecomcompaniesenterintoviableMOUwithelectricitydistributioncompaniestousetheirrelaytowersandpolestoinstallantennasandsignal
boostersandparticularlywiththedeadMTNLindelhitouseitspolestoinstallantennas.
ReplyLink
http://telecomtalk.info/calldropsthereasonsandpossiblesolutionstoensurenocalldrops/142422/

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CallDrops:TheReasonsandPossibleSolutionstoensure#NoCallDrops

qaisKANNURSeptember7,201511:38am,11:38AM
SHOULDASKMOBILEMANUFACTURESTOSELLONLY3GENABLEDPHONESININDIA
GOVTSHOULDNOTGIVEPERMISSIONTOINSTALLNEW2GTOWERS
ALL2GNETWORKSHOULDBECONVERTEDTO3GOR4GWITHVOLTEBY2020.
900MHZCANBECONVERTEDTO3GAND1800MHZTO4GWITHVOLTE.
CALLDROP
SINCE2004INKERALAALLMOSTALLOPERATORHAVETHISPROBLEMEVERYWHEREITSCONTINUINGANDINCREASING.
GOVTSHOULDHAVECLEARCRITERIAFORTOWERTOCUSTOMERRATIOINEVERYCITY.
ReplyLink

SuryaSeptember7,201510:49am,10:49AM
Lotoftowers(fullyinstalledandoperational)inandaroundmanycities,especiallyinresidentialareas,havebeenlockeddownbylocalauthoritiesbasis
complaintsfromtheresidentsaboutthehazardsofradiationandcancer.
TowerRadiationisaveryverybigthreatloomingaroundandalsothecancercasesareincreasingdaybydayinthecountry.
ReplyLink

AirtelLoverSeptember8,20156:46pm,6:46PM
Cancerisduetoadulteratedfoodandpollution,notmobiletowers.
ReplyLink

KiranFernandesMumbai/Gurgaon/GoaSeptember8,20157:25pm,7:25PM
Itsnotthetowersthatcausesthehealthissues.ItsthemobilephonesthatusethetowerwhichcauseshealthissuesDontwantcancer?dontuseamobile
phoneItsassimpleaspickingcotton.
ReplyLink

MANOJKUMARNewDelhiSeptember7,20159:42am,9:42AM
Usingairtelforalongtime,neverfacedcalldropissueinoffice(Sec62,Noida)butathomesometimefacescalldrops..anditisfrequentwhentravelling.
Operators,musttakeitonpriorityandtakeitinpublicinterest.
ReplyLink

StephenSeptember7,201512:33am,12:33AM
Missedout..Telcosshuttingdowncellsitesonbusinessviability.Existingtowerswhicharenotprofitableisshutdownreducinghighway/railcoverageand
increasingcalldrops.Alsoperiodicmaintenanceofbatterybanksnotdoneduetowhichcellsitesgoesoutwhenlossofpower.
Andthemostimportant..Nohandoffinicrboundaries..Morecalldropswillbeobservedonicrboundariesashandoffisnotdefinedbetweenoperators.
ReplyLink

JIJOTRIVANDRUMSeptember6,201510:49pm,10:49PM
HerecomesthesignificanceofCDMAasatechnology.Whycantwethinkthatwayalso?Ithasgreaterspectralefficiencyright?
ReplyLink

AbishekNaagendraChennaiSeptember6,20158:47pm,8:47PM
IhaveneverfacedcalldropissuesfromAirtel(sometimesveryrarelycalltakeslongertimetoconnect),sometimescalldropsinVodafonenetworkespeciallyin
peaktimesandruralareasCalldrops50%inBSNLChennainetworkCallsonlygetconnectedwhenImoutsidemyhome(Callclarityisalsoworse)But,
inotherplacesinTamilnadu,Andhra,absolutelyIhaventfacedanyproblemwithBSNLRelianceisworstoverhereTataDoCoMoisgoodHaventfaced
muchproblemsAircelisalsoasgoodasAirtel,butsometimesveryrarely,insomepeaktimesandpeakareas,Ifacesomelongerconnecttimes
ReplyLink

SutriptaRoyKolkataSeptember6,20158:15pm,8:15PM
CalldroponAIRTEL(sometimesplacebased),AIRCEL(sometimesplacebased),RELIANCE(frequent)atkolkatafacingforlast2months
NocalldroponVodafoneandTataDocomostillnow
ReplyLink
http://telecomtalk.info/calldropsthereasonsandpossiblesolutionstoensurenocalldrops/142422/

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KrissridharSeptember6,20158:09pm,8:09PM
Verywellwrittenarticle.Kudostothewriter.
ReplyLink

MohitDelhiSeptember6,20155:43pm,5:43PM
Hey,Ihavenotcalledanyoneforlast4years,soIhavenotfacedanycalldropissue.Iusemobilephonefor3Ginternetmostly.
Lookslikeonlychatterboxpeoplefacecalldropissues:)
ReplyLink

AMITBangaloreSeptember6,20154:52pm,4:52PM
Hey,ImusingAirtelsince4years&evennowIhavenotfacedcalldropissue.LookslikeDelhiisworstaffected
ReplyLink

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