Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Jio has addressed concerns regarding data usage on its recently launched voice and SMS-only plans, clarifying that customers can indeed add data add-ons to these plans. The clarification comes after confusion arose about the ability to use data on these plans.
Jio introduced two new plans designed for users who primarily use their mobile phones for calling and texting after a TRAI directive made it mandatory for telcos to have such options. The base Rs 448 plan offers 84 days of unlimited voice calls along with 1,000 SMS messages. A long-term annual plan is also available for Rs 1,748 offering similar benefits for 336 days, also with unlimited voice calls and 1,000 SMS limit.
These plans are designed for users who don’t regularly need mobile data. TRAI’s ruling was based on the argument that the bundled data—which they probably might never use—made plans more expensive and so, the idea was that prices would go down if customers chose to remove the data element. This came in the wake of Jio, Airtel, and others increasing their tariffs last year.
Initial reports and customer feedback on platforms like X (formerly Twitter) suggested that users on these voice and SMS-only plans couldn’t add data packs, if needed, limiting their flexibility. This led to frustration, as it restricted data access even for occasional use, say for instance to make UPI payments.
Jio has now confirmed that this is not the case. The company confirmed to financialexpress.com that customers subscribing to these voice-only plans can recharge with data add-on packs. These data packs, such as those priced at Rs 11, Rs 19, and Rs 29, are available through all Jio recharge channels. This includes the Jio website (Jio.com), the MyJio app, point-of-sale locations, and third-party agents.
It means users can enjoy the cost-effectiveness of voice and SMS-only plans while still having the option to add data when required, making them more versatile and user-friendly.
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