Kerala respond cool to IMEI number

IEMI is the short form for International Mobile Equipment Identity. It is a number unique to every GSM, WCDMA and iDEN mobile phones and also for some satellite phones. IMEI number is usually found inside the battery compartment of the mobile phone or it can be viewed in the display by entering *#06# into the keypad of most of the mobile phones. The IMEI number is used by the GSM network to identify valid devices and therefore can be used to stop a stolen phone from accessing the network. For example, if a mobile phone is stolen, the owner can call his or her service provider and instruct them to "ban" the phone using its IMEI number. This renders the phone useless, whether or not the phone's SIM is changed. IMEI number is used to track the device and it will not provide any information about the user.

Four days after the Department of Telecom (DoT) theoretically turned the mobile handsets without IMEI number to silent mode, a large number of them still rings in Kerala - a report on the THE HINDU newspaper told.

Reasons :

• The service providers fears that by turning the mobile phones without the IMEI number may result in the loss of a large number of customers. It is estimated that there are approximately six lakh mobile phones without IMEI number in Kerala. These mobile phones are also called Chinese Mobile phones since most of them is imported from China.
• Most of the users of the phones without the IMEI number are migrant workers and they are unaware about the IMEI number and its purpose.
• Media gave less importance to resolve the problem and in making people aware about the IMEI number. 

 Getting genuine IMEI number
         
            Mobile Standards Alliance of India (MSAI) had launched Genuine IMEI Implant (GII) programme to help the mobile users get genuine IMEI number. The users are given 45 days from November 30 to implant genuine IMEI number. It only costs Rs 199 and 10 minutes to implant a gunine number. Only a little over 15000 users have implemented genuine IMEI numbers. There are 40 authorized centers across Kerala where one can get his genuine IMEI number.

To know whether your IMEI number is genuine or not  SMS the IMEI number you see when entering *#06# to 53232. The message formate is :

IMEI15 digit IMEI number