For post-paid subscriber cards, Essar users will now be charged Rs 6 per minute from 10 am to 9 pm (standard hours), Rs 5.75 per minute from 9 pm till midnight and 8 am and 10 am. In addition, the midnight to 8 am slot will be offered at Rs 4 per minute. Monthly rentals for post-paid card users will now be Rs 600 per month, as per the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India's (TRAI) recent order.

The new tariffs have been designed with an eye on weaning low-volume post-paid users to the pre-paid option. Essar has retained the pre-paid card scheme in order to encourage low-volume subscribers to migrate to the popular Speed card. The reduction in pre-paid air-time rates to Rs 12 from the earlier three-tier rate is likely to encourage low-volume users to shift over.

Users of Speed card are charged Rs 16 per minute during peak hours, Rs 8 off peak and Rs 4 during night hours. The company has effectively slashed the peak air-time pre-paid rate by 64 per cent.

The calling party principle (CPP) making incoming calls free will come into effect from August 1, 1999 according to a company release. The new tariff plan of Essar comes in the wake of TRAI's notification on the new telecom tariffs.

For post-paid subscribers wanting to switch over to pre-paid cards, Essar will waive the initial activation fee of Rs 1,260, while allowing users to retain their old numbers. The scheme will be open for one month after the new tariffs come into effect. Pre-paid cards also have STD/ISD connectivity without the need to have a deposit.