In its report submitted to the chairman of the Group on Telecom (GoT) and finance minister Yashwant Sinha, the sub-group has also said that the number of members of the TRAI be reduced to four instead of the present seven.

Sources added that the sub-group, headed by minister of information & broadcasting Arun Jaitley, had recommended that it should not be mandatory for the department of telecom (DoT) to seek TRAI's advice in all matters. However, it would be reasonable for the department to consult the regulator on issues of mutual concern.

The sub-group has also suggested that the TRAI be empowered to award interim relief and impose penalties on violators. On the issue of court appeals, the sub-group has provided that a division bench of the HCdirectly hears appeals.

The above changes, if approved, will remove the present ambiguity in the TRAI Act and improve the regulator's performance. The recommendations were discussed at a meeting of the GoT on Sunday. The meeting was chaired by finance minister Yashwant Sinha and included the ministers and secretaries of a number of departments. The sub-group on strengthening TRAI had been set up under the Group on Telecom (GoT) and IT Convergence and was asked to submit its report by January 15. The sub-group includes Director in the Prime Minister's Office Sudheendra Kulkarni and Secretary, department of economic affairs EAS Sarma. The committee took inputs from a variety of sources including the industry, legal luminaries and TRAI officials.

The government had set up three sub-groups in the last meeting of the Group on Telecom and IT convergence on December 23. The other two sub-groups are headed by member, Planning Commission Montek Singh Ahluwalia and Rajya Sabha member Fali Nariman.