Indians opt for state-run blockchain platform amid bulk SMS regulations

India’s state-owned telecom Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has registered 7,477 businesses on its blockchain-based communication platform after authorities imposed new regulations to protect consumers from spam and fraud.

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) established messaging regulations that require scrubbing consumer communication messages to ensure that the receiver of the message has opted in for such interactions. The drive is supported by BSNL DLT, a content verification platform built on ledger-based blockchain protocols.

As the SMS regulation is applicable for all industry verticals, the list of 7,477 registrations includes banks, educational institutions and private businesses. TRAI had reportedly warned about blocking communications of non-compliant entities, as an official said:

“The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India will accept no reason, give no consideration and no extension to all those who have not streamlined their SMS process. Let their businesses suffer 100%.”

Businesses using BSNL DLT will be subject to SMS screening against pre-registered messaging templates hosted on the blockchain. In case of a mismatch, the message will be blocked by the company’s telecom provider honoring consumer interest.

Related: Indian university joins Hedera decentralized governance council

India’s commitment to blockchain adoption has strengthened after a state-run university, the Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IITM), joined 38 global organizations to govern the Hedera public ledger as a part of the Hedera Governing Council.

According to professor Prabhu Rajagopal from IITM’s Center for Nondestructive Evaluation, the institution will test use cases around public blockchains for payments, healthcare, industry and digital media.

On July 27, Cointelegraph reported that a sizable Indian institute implemented LegitDoc, a tamper-proof credentialing system built on the Ethereum blockchain, to verify diploma certificates. Currently, other Indian universities are exploring and implementing similar strategies.