In Kerala, mobile phones are now 25 years old

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Though the country had celebrated July 31 as the 25th anniversary of mobile phones in the Indian telecom industry, Kerala had to wait till September 17 for the same. Mobile phone use in Kerala is now 25 years old. It was on September 17 as it was on September 17, 1996, writer Thakazhi Sivasankara Pillai spoke to A R Tandon, the then Vice-Admiral of Indian Navy, using a Nokia mobile phone. The service was provided by Escotel Cellular Service (currently Vodafone).

Whereas it was on July 31, 1995, India made history as the first mobile phone call was made by then West Bengal Chief Minister Jyoti Basu and erstwhile Union Telecom Minister Sukh Ram. Mobile phone services, then, were reserved only for the elite as every call would cost a whopping Rs 24 then. Twenty-five years later, the state has come a long way as the telecom sector as the last one decade alone witnessed an increase of 1.12 crore mobile phone connections in Kerala.