
Getting a SIM card in India - dangoldin
http://dangoldin.com/2013/12/23/getting-a-sim-card-in-india/
======
arocks
Despite poor infrastructure in many areas, India has one of the best telecom
infrastructure thanks to Sam Pitroda - the father of Indian telecom. From
Wikipedia [1]:

"As technology Advisor to the Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi in the 1984s,
Pitroda not only heralded the telecom revolution in India, but also made a
strong case for using technology for the benefit of society through missions
on telecommunications, literacy, dairy, water, immunization and oil seeds."

Getting a SIM card is intentionally hard partly due to their prevalence for
terrorist activities (especially in its initial days when anyone could simply
buy a SIM card from a store without any ID proof) and partly from the lack of
a centralized electronic citizen identification system similar to SSN.

[1]:
[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_Pitroda](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_Pitroda)

~~~
gingerlime
> Getting a SIM card is intentionally hard partly due to their prevalence for
> terrorist activities

Seriously? That sounds like the most idiotic excuse ever. Terrorists also eat
chewing gum, so we're going to ask for ID and 24 hour waiting period before
buying chewing gums?

In the UK (and probably many other countries), you can buy a SIM card in a
grocery shop and it's activated instantly. Adding a data plan or call/sms
package is as easy as using a shortcode or sending a SMS.

~~~
learningram
Terrorists cannot deploy bomb blasts using chewing gums

~~~
Zigurd
Unless they are worried about the bill, they can do that with SIMs that roam
in India.

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tyoma
My experience of getting a SIM card in Mumbai:

Go to hotel concierge, ask about getting a SIM card. Referred to English
speaking member of staff. Offer him INR100 plus costs to get me a sim card
with data plan. Browsing the web within 15 minutes.

~~~
dangoldin
Yep! That's pretty much what my attempt turned into after trying to do it on
my own. It took me 4 hours though - still better than the 24 they said it
would take.

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naanalla
Indian here and also work in telecom core tech. So more info below

1\. about 1/2 year back getting SIM was like getting oxygen. It was like Rs5
or even free some times. It started causing lots of issues. Its way for cheap
advertising actually you know Indians tend to spend less, specially in
business. Following are some of the consequences

    
    
       i. Marketing SMS from these free/cheap SIM cards
    
       ii. Perverts start irritating ladies(yes, this is true)
    
       iii. Of course lots of marketing calls.
    
       iv. The worst part is its used for all kinds of illegal activity, when police wanted traces, the SIM card vanishes without any proofs.
    
       v. The biggest problem TERRORISTS. 

Now govt wanted control over these problems.

Govt took few good steps like DND(Do Notcall Directory) where a customer
registers himself/herself to this service do not get any unwanted calls. If
such calls comes then the operator will be heavily penalized.

2\. Since they wanted tracking of the the valid users of the SIM, strict rules
followed to give govt provided photo id for Indians and passport for non-
Indians. And also took strict activation mechanism that a voice call is made
from operator to verify the user details given.

3\. now the tech part :). You know since India is one of the biggest countries
and due to business and competition we have around 17 operators. Even complex
part is although Airtel(in your case) in Delhi and Bombay, technically both
work as different operators(yes its true). 404-10 Airtel Delhi and 404-92
AIRTEL Mumbai. refer this link
[http://modmymobile.com/forums/70-slvr-l9-l72/555395-mcc-
mnc-...](http://modmymobile.com/forums/70-slvr-l9-l72/555395-mcc-mnc-ids-
india.html) This means if your Delhi user and make call from Bombay the
original authentication happens in Delhi itself(in telecom language its called
Home Location Register HLR in short). And when you visit Bombay/Mumbai you are
in a location called Visitor Location Register in short VLR. Since your card
is not yet activated the VLR rejects you,Hope this helps.

P.S: India does not allow location based services as of now. and TRAI(Telecom
Regulatory Authority of India) expects your calls SMS etc are stored for 36
months. So if you have done something wrong using mobile phone in India,
beware that govt has 3 years to get hold of you :)

HAPPY MOBILING IN INDIA :)

------
lenkite
Generally, whenever colleagues from abroad visit Bangalore, I keep a local SIM
card in my name ready for them. After the 2008 Mumbai terrorist attacks, the
govt of India made it ludicrously difficult for any foreigner to get a local
SIM card. I found this absolutely strange since the Mumbai terrorists never
used local SIM cards - they were using satellite phones. I guess some guy in
national security had a checklist of security proposals to implement and this
was on the list. And once a complex process gets implemented in India, due to
bureaucratic inertia, it never gets simplified.

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yashg
Getting a SIM card is equally arduous even for Indian citizens. You need to
have an ID proof, address proof and of course a photo. If you are a married
woman and have changed the middle/last name after marriage, you also need to
give a marriage certificate copy! And you have to provide these docs at
regular intervals.

Despite this, some unscrupulous people manage to get hundreds of SIM cards
activated, some times for crime, some times just to vote on Reality TV shows
on behalf of a contestant.

300 for a SIM is too much. Reliance charges INR 10 ($0.16) for SIM.

~~~
dangoldin
That's surprising. I'd think locals would know where to go and who to talk to
get everything working. As a foreigner it's tough to know what to expect and
different places will tell you different things.

I guess the 300 rupees was the foreigner tax.

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bluerobotcat
This is nothing compared to the $1,000 security deposit an AT&T employee asked
me for an prepaid iPad SIM card. They wanted this deposit because I didn't
have a social security number.

T-Mobile sorted me out eventually, but they have their own issues.

Not being able to get a SIM card in India is actually a huge deal for
travelers because India's roaming fees are pretty much the highest in the
world. I remember a short (5 minutes?) phone call that set me back 100 euros a
few years ago.

~~~
mcpherrinm
I had a AT&T employee helpfully give me an account with nothing more than my
first name -- I think he filled in the address of the store and zeros for
everything else. But I'd previously had them outright refuse to sell me one.

I bought a T-mobile SIM at Walmart for their legendary $30/mo unltd data plan,
and online activation wanted a bunch of PII (I forget if it asked for an SSN
as I had one at that point).

I really wish getting a prepaid SIM was easier than it is, but I can
understand law enforcement's apprehension about "burner phones". Ideally I'd
shove a $20 in a vending machine in an airport when I land and pop it in my
phone.

~~~
bluerobotcat
Was it for an iPad? Those seem to be especially difficult.

I went to five AT&T shops before giving up. I also went to two T-Mobile shops
before someone would help me.

Other challenges: AT&T only allows prepaid SIM cards to be activated using a
US credit card that is linked to an address. So foreign or prepaid credit
cards don't work.

------
tiemand
> First off, to get a SIM card as a foreigner in India, you need to have a
> copy of your passport and visa, a passport sized photo, and a local to act
> as a reference

Except the local reference part, you go through a similar procedure in Saudi
Arabia... in fact.. you need to supply your Iqama (work permit) or passport
number over the phone every time you need to topup your SIM. All this in the
name of curbing "terrorism"

~~~
dangoldin
Ha - there's another post right now that's talking about how tough it is to
open bank accounts in the UK due to the "terrorism" protection laws. It's
usually the common folk who get screwed with the new processes.

If it gets too hard to do this people just come up with hacks around it.
Similar to how a stranger at the hotel just vouched as a reference without
knowing me very well.

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swatkat
The procedure is same for Indian citizens too. All operators ask for address
proof, ID proof and a passport size photo. You'll immediately get SIM card and
it would be activated after 24 hours, sometimes much sooner. Moreover, if
you're buying a postpaid or Internet connection, then operators send somebody
to the address you've given during purchase to verify if it's genuine.

All these steps are in place to prevent criminals/terrorists getting SIM cards
with fake identities:

[http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-11-17/hyder...](http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-11-17/hyderabad/35171328_1_new-
mobile-connections-mobile-operators-sim-cards)

This link has some info for travelers:

[http://www.indiamike.com/india-articles/buying-a-prepaid-
sim...](http://www.indiamike.com/india-articles/buying-a-prepaid-sim-card-in-
india-as-a-foreigner)

~~~
chmars
And of course, criminals and terrorist would never get their SIM cards from
someone else …?! :->

A mandatory registration to get a SIM card is very common on a global level
but it's more about lawful surveillance of lawful citizens. All other
'citizens' won't bother with providing the surveillance state with valid
credentials.

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tim333
More annoyingly in India as a tourist if you leave the country you are not
allowed back in for 60 days unless it's all prearranged with the embassy as
deciding to say pop to Thailand or back to London for a week is evidently a
terrorist type thing to do. The main problem with terrorism seems not the
infinitesimal risk of actually being killed by one but the certainty of
massive inconvenience to everyday people so the politicians can be seen as
'doing something'. Funny aside - I got my Indian SIM in a similar way and then
it stopped working which turned out to be because the phone exchange had
caught on fire and partly burnt down, which I didn't expect. Indian travel eh?

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jhuckestein
Friendly locals are usually able to get a sim card for you without any delay.
I got my first one from a rickshaw driver (I actually bought his active sim
card and phone) for a $10 more than it would have cost. A guesthouse owner did
the same thing on another occasion. Make sure to ask nicely, because these
people are on the hook if you do illegal things with those cards.

I once went through the official channels, too, and it was much easier than I
thought. I didn't have a passport photo either, so I went across the street to
get one taken. Then I came back the next day and picked up a working sim card.
It's only a bother if you need the sim card right away.

------
avemuri
It used to be relatively hassle free until the terrorist attacks of recent
years (they used cellphones to coordinate movement). Indian KYC (know your
customer) rules are the counterpart of having to take your shoes off at the
airport in the US.

~~~
dangoldin
Yea. It's expected and probably still easier than doing the same in the US.
I'm sure it affects common people a lot more than the actual terrorists
though.

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furyg3
Store (Vodafone, Airtel, whatever): Think about the normal level of mobile
telco bureaucracy in Europe or the US, and then multiply that times Indian
bureaucracy. Nobody in the store really cares if your SIM works, they just
want the day to be over with.

Stalls: If they don't hook you up with a working SIM, they don't make money
:). They will give you an activated SIM and serve as your reference, but you
do run the risk that something will go wrong in the process later. I've had my
SIM disabled a week later because some document wasn't included (photo, hotel
as an address, whatever).

But no worries, they're so cheap you can just get a new one.

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seshagiric
Considering that cell phones have been a favorite choice of certain elements
(they can be used as triggers etc). The process to get a sim card is now
really (hopefully) tightened. Or at least not as easy it was before.

~~~
tim333
You really think having a slight hassle getting a SIM unofficially is going to
stop actual terrorists? It's all political theatre.

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lukeqsee
I know the process in Europe (Germany & Italy, at least) is similar, without
the need for a local reference or visa. I was very surprised (and frustrated)
to discover the need for a photocopy of my passport, but the need for
connectivity and the inexpensiveness of the plans finally won me over.

~~~
pilsetnieks
Not everywhere in Europe – from my experience to get a prepaid SIM card in
Austria, France, Sweden, Spain, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia and most likely
many other countries you just need to plop some cash on the counter and be on
your merry way. Documentation is generally only required for a card with a
contract.

~~~
thaumasiotes
Yeah, the process of buying a SIM card in China is:

1\. Go to a store (or stall) that has them.

2\. Pay money.

In what I (apparently naively) thought wasn't a coincidence, that's exactly
the same process that the US uses. I'm kind of shocked to hear that in some
countries (Australia?!) you need documentation to purchase one.

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CaptainZapp
Sheesh,

To compare that with getting a SIM in Thailand.

You go to one of the three vendors, who set up a stall at BKK hand over your
phone and they insert the SIM and configure it (useful if you want Internet
access). 5 minutes later and 1'000 bt (ca. 30USD) poorer (depending on the
plan) you are on your merry ways.

~~~
idProQuo
Yikes, 1000THB? You can just go to 7-11 and buy a SIM card for 50 baht
($1.50). They have 3G capable ones too.

~~~
CaptainZapp
Depends what you want.

Yes, 50bt will get you the naked SIM, but if you want to make calls, or
connect to the Internet you need to charge it.

The 1000bt quoted includes 30 days of Internet access with a 1 - 2 GB traffic
included and 200-300bt of additional phone credit for calls and sms.

From that perspective 1000bt don't look too bad anymore.

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girvo
Interesting. In Australia, you go to any store or 7-11/newsagent, buy a SIM
starter kit, show photo ID and sign a document saying you're not a terrorist,
then out in the SIM and activate it online or over the phone.

~~~
szatkus
Good that terrorists are very honest people...

~~~
girvo
Isn't it? ;)

------
known
A terrorist is a freedom f ighter who isn't on your side.

