AHMEDABAD: Idea Cellular on Tuesday announced electronic bill payment through SMS. Idea has tied up with IndiaIdeas.com, a Bank of Baroda associate for the electronic clearing operations.

Speaking at the launch of the service, Sukanta Dey, Chief Operating Officer for Gujarat said "subscribers can now pay their bills by sending an SMS irrespective of where they are".

He said Idea's subscriber base in Gujarat has crossed the 2,00,000 mark already. In order to avail of the bill payment facility by SMS, subscribers need to visit a dealer and fill up a form. The form then needs to be attested by the subscribers' bankers acknowledging standing instructions for electronic bill payment on the due date. The service has curently been launched in Ahmedabad, Gandhinagar, Vadodara and Surat and will be extended once debit clearing facilities commence in other cities too.