The government has responded to misleading claims regarding recent mobile services tariff hike, saying with three private and one public sector player, the current mobile services market operates through the market forces of demand and supply.

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) said the rates of telecommunication services are decided by market forces, within the regulatory framework notified by the independent regulator.

“The government does not intervene in the free market decisions as the functionality is under the domain of TRAI and tariffs are under forbearance,” said the regulator.