“First leg of Sanchar Saathi portal is CEIR (Central Equipment Identity Register). If you lose your mobile phone, then you can visit this portal. There will be some identity verification, requirement of undertaking and immediately after this the portal will interact with law enforcement agencies and telecom service providers and block your lost mobile phone,” Vaishnaw said.

The Sanchar Saathi facilities have been developed by C-DoT. The technology development arm under the Department of Telecom has been able to add feature to check use of cloned mobile phones across all telecom networks.

C-DOT has been running the pilot of the technology in some of the telecom circles including Delhi, Maharashtra, Karnataka and North East.

After stealing mobile phone, miscreants change the IMEI number of the device to prevent tracking and blocking of such handsets.

Telecom operators and CEIR system will have visibility into IMEI number of the device and mobile number linked to it and the information is being used in some states to track your lost or stolen mobiles through CEIR.

The CEIR will be able to block any cloned mobile phones on the network with the help of various databases.

Indian government has made it mandatory to disclose IMEI– a 15-digit unique numeric identifier of mobile devices before their sale in India. Mobile networks across the country will have access to the list of approved IMEI numbers which will check the entry of any unauthorised mobile phones on their network.

Here’s how you can track/block your lost phone using Sanchar Saathi:

Step 1- Visit https://sarcharsaathi.gov.in.

Step 2- Next, click on ‘Register here’

Step 3- Here, you will find options to find stolen or lost device. Click on it

Step 4- Now, enter your name, mobile number, IMEI number and device’s details. 

Step 5-  You will also be required to upload the purchase invoice of the phone

Step 6- Next, enetr details like city, district, state and date when you lost your device

Step 7- You will have to verify the details using mobile number OTP

Step 8- Click on ‘Create Account’ button to submit your registration

Step 9- Next, login to your account using ID and password.

Step 10- To search your lost/stolen phone, click on ‘IMEI Search’ button and enter details as asked. The portal will show your phone’s location if it is switched on.

Step 11- To block your phone, click on ‘Block Stolen/Lost Phone’, enter your phone number and click on ‘Block’.