Department of Telecommunications (DoT) to honor top-performing States/UTs, District Police and Police Stations for recovery of lost mobile handsets through Sanchar Saathi

Ministry of Communications Department of Telecommunications

(DoT) to honor top-performing States/UTs, District Police and Police Stations for recovery of lost mobile handsets through Sanchar Saathi Awards to be presented in upcoming National, Zonal & State level Events of DoT Number of handsets traceable and recovered are to be key performance parameters

Posted On: 14 OCT 2026 6:03PM by PIB Delhi The Department of Telecommunications (DoT), Government of India will recognize and award the best-performing States/Union Territories (UTs), Police Districts and Police Stations for their exemplary efforts in recovering lost/stolen mobile handsets traced through the Sanchar Saathi portal - a citizen centric initiative of DoT to empower mobile subscribers, strengthen their security and increase awareness about citizen centric initiatives of the Government. The awards will be presented during the upcoming National, Zonal & State level Events of DoT.

The initiative aims to acknowledge the significant contribution of State/UT Police authorities in tracing and recovering lost or stolen mobile handsets and returning them to their rightful owners. It also seeks to encourage greater coordination between DoT, its License Service Area (LSA) field units, police authorities and telecom operators, promote the adoption of effective recovery practices, and improve recovery outcomes for citizens across the country.

The awards will be based on measurable performance parameters, i.e based on accuracy (i.e handsets recovered against trace generated) and total number of handsets recovered etc. These parameters will help recognize the scale, accuracy and timeliness of recovery efforts undertaken by States/UTs, Police Districts and Police Stations. The detailed evaluation methodology and applicable assessment period will be finalized by DoT.

The State/UT-wise data on mobile handsets traced and recovered through the Sanchar Saathi portal is publicly available on the portal’s dashboard, which also provides visibility into recovery trends. This data will serve as an important reference for assessingperformance and identifying high-performing jurisdictions and police units.

Sanchar Saathi portal facilitates the blocking and tracing of lost or stolen mobile handsets through the Central Equipment Identity Register (CEIR) facility. When a reported handset is subsequently detected on a telecom network, traceability information is generated and made available to the respective Police authorities, supporting police efforts to locate and recover the device. An alert regarding the traceability is also sent to the citizen through SMS and email.

The initiative reflects the importance of close coordination among DoT, its LSA field units, Telecom Service Providers and State/UT Police authorities in strengthening mobile security and protecting citizens’ digital assets. The proposed awards will provide a platform to recognize outstanding work, encourage healthy performance-driven competition and promote the sharing of successful practices across jurisdictions.

DoT reiterates its commitment to strengthening the Sanchar Saathi ecosystem and supporting law-enforcement agencies in improving the recovery of lost and stolen mobile handsets. Citizens can access the portal at www.sancharsaathi.gov.in or use Sanchar Saathi Mobile app to report lost or stolen mobile handsets and avail following citizen centric services.

Services at the fingertips of every citizen Sanchar Saathi brings the following citizen-centric services on a single platform:

Chakshu – Report suspected fraud communication and spam: Report suspicious calls, SMS or WhatsApp messages – such as fake KYC or bill- payment alerts, impersonation of Government, police or bank officials, and fraudulent investment, job or loan offers – in a few simple steps.

Know mobile connections in your name: Check all mobile connections issued on your identity and report those which you have not taken or no longer require, so that they cannot be misused.

Block your lost or stolen mobile handset: Block the handset across the networks of all telecom operators so that it cannot be used anywhere in India, enable its tracing, and unblock it once it is found.

Know the genuineness of your mobile handset: Verify a handset through its IMEI number before buying a new or second-hand phone.

Report incoming international calls with Indian numbers: Report calls from abroad that are disguised as domestic (+91) numbers, helping the Government act against illegal telecom set-ups.

Trusted Contact Details: Verify the genuine customer care numbers, email IDs and website links of banks and financial institutions before sharing any information.

Keep Yourself Aware: Access awareness material on prevailing fraud trends such as fake loan apps, investment scams, fake job calls and fake traffic challans DoT is fully committed to ensure safety of citizens through its proactive actions for curbing misuse of telecom resources for cybercrime and financial frauds. Sanchar Saathi is also

available as mobile app and can be downloaded from:For Android:: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.dot.app.sanchars aathi

For iOS: https://apps.apple.com/app/sanchar-saathi/id6739700695

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