India, Nov. 10 -- The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) on Monday capped the fees telecom companies can charge each other for internet-based (IP) connections between their networks.

It is the first time that the telecom regulator has made such a move. It is part of a wider push to retire the decades-old technology that operators still use to connect calls between networks.

Under the Telecommunication Interconnection (Port Charges) (Third Amendment) Regulations, 2026, an operator may charge no more than Rs.5.6 lakh per year for a 1 Gbps IP port and Rs.42.3 lakh per year for a 10 Gbps port.

A "port" is the point where two networks meet to exchange traffic. When a user on one network calls someone on another, the call passes th...