Scindia Hails Sanchar Saathi’s Record 75,000 Phone Recoveries
Union Minister hails record recoveries, credits DoT, police and telecom coordination
- Sanchar Saathi recovered over 75,000 lost or stolen handsets in a single month.
- Monthly handset recoveries rose 201% between April 2025 and July 2026.
- New traceability features have strengthened coordination between citizens and police.
- Lost phones reported through the platform are blocked on Indian telecom networks.
GG News Bureau
New Delhi, 28th Aug: The Department of Telecommunications’ (DoT) citizen-centric initiative Sanchar Saathi has recovered more than 75,000 lost or stolen mobile handsets in a single month for the first time since its inception, Union Minister for Communications Jyotiraditya M. Scindia said on Friday.
Scindia hailed the achievement, attributing the increase in recoveries to the coordinated efforts of the DoT, telecom service providers and police departments across States and Union Territories.
According to the DoT, monthly handset recoveries increased by 201 per cent from April 2025 to July 2026. The department said the rise reflects continuous enhancements to the Sanchar Saathi ecosystem and stronger coordination among its Digital Intelligence Unit, field units and police personnel.
Under the enhanced system, citizens receive the name of the police station handling the traceability of their handset through SMS, email, the Sanchar Saathi portal and the mobile application.
Details of SIM cards inserted into lost or stolen handsets, including alternate mobile numbers, are also made available to police authorities to facilitate recovery. Citizens are further advised through SMS to carry out a factory reset of recovered devices to protect against suspected malware.
The Sanchar Saathi platform allows citizens to report lost or stolen mobile phones through its web portal and mobile app. Once reported, the handset is blocked from Indian telecom networks, preventing its misuse.
If an attempt is subsequently made to use the blocked handset, the network generates an alert for the citizen and the concerned police station, helping authorities trace and recover the device.
The DoT said the latest achievement has been enabled by an indigenous platform, automated workflows and real-time device traceability. It added that the initiative is aimed at empowering citizens and protecting digital assets as part of the government’s Digital India vision.
