Trial to detect cell phone thefts

New Delhi : The Department of Telecommunication (DoT) has engaged an American firm on trial basis to create a central registry of the mobile handsets from the next month to help check and recover the stolen mobile phones by creating a data bank of the IMEI, a 15-digit international identity number that is unique to every mobile handset.  The New Jersey-based Telcordia Technologies, which is already licensed as a clearing house in India for managing the mobile number portability (MNP), has offered to help the authorities locate instantly a handset each time it is used. The DoT officials said the company has been only asked to have a trial run and if they are satisfied with the technology, the party to be engaged for running the facility on pan-India basis will be selected through tender and it has been made quite clear to Telcordia that it will have to also bid as the trial does not automatically give it the licence. Once the new facility is set up, it would become easier to recover the stolen or lost mobile phones as the service provider will maintain a central registry of IMEI of all handsets in use in India to help track any mobile phone. Though the DoT is talking of inviting tender after the success of the trial-run, sources said Telcordia is the only agency which has developed a software for the purpose. The DoT plan is that the data to be maintained in the central registry can be accessed by all mobile service providers and the law enforcement agencies. It will not only reduce cell phone thefts but also help nab the criminals. A user can easily check the IMEI number of his mobile set by dialing *#06# and note it down in his diary as it helps the police to track down the stolen set without any hassles.