HFCL Infotel Limited on Monday announced the launch of colored handsets of its Ping brand of mobile at a rate of Rs 499 in the Punjab market, aiming to penetrate urban, semi-urban and rural markets.

"Our aim is to make telephony available to people in all walks of life," said G. D. Singh, COO, HFCL Infotel Ltd in a statement issued here on Monday.

The Rs 499 handset comes bundled with a predefined activated mobile number which can be recharged with special tariff packs for Rs. 151, Rs. 201 or Rs. 251. The local call rate of one paisa per second and STD at Rs 1.50 per minute shall be available on these plans. The subscriber can also enjoy the validity of 30 days and STD call rate of rupee one per minute on the minimum recharge coupon of Rs. 33

Ping, a CDMA mobile service, has achieved a total customer base of 2.5 lakh within a year of launch, he said.
Pings mobile services are available across 270 towns and 2050 villages in Punjab and Chandigarh through a distribution network of 8000 retail outlets.