TRAI flags 24.4 billion spam calls, launches 1601 series

Every day, many people in India get phone calls and text messages they did not ask for — these are called spam.

Some people get up to five unwanted calls every single day.

The people in charge of phones in India, called TRAI, counted the numbers over three months and found 24.4 billion spam calls and messages.

That is a very, very big number — billions mean thousands of millions.

TRAI is like a referee that makes rules for phone companies.

This year, it started new phone numbers that begin with 1601, so people can tell which calls are real.

Real electric, water, gas, courier and parcel companies will use these numbers.

Bank and government calls will keep using the old 1600 numbers.

TRAI also blocked billions of spam calls because people had said they do not want them.

But many people have not made this choice yet, so spammers can still reach them, and TRAI keeps working to stop it.