DoT seeks Cabinet nod to refer sops to TRAI

The operators, however, requested DoTto have individual parleys with each company on the issue of the securitisation of their outstandings by way of unpaid licence fees — as this is an issue between the licensor (DoT on behalf of the Government) and the licensee (the individual private company).

DoT, skeptical to let the issue of pending dues off the hook owing to pressure from the Ministry of Finance as well as a recent public interest litigation on the issue, has asked operators to give individual endorsements on the offer along with the alternatives that they would like to consider for securitisation of their outstandings if the bank guarantee route was not acceptable to them.

Earlier in the day, cellular operators, under the aegis of the COAI, met Gokak for a three-hour meeting called to get a consensus that no company would involve the Government in any litigations after the TRAI came out with its order on the twin issues of concessions. DoT had set a pre-condition that all companies would accept the TRAI’s decision as binding as wouldDoT.

Some operators had reservations about the condition of securitisation of their outstanding dues to DoT which is why they have requested for a distinction between this issue and the issue of extension of the licence period and the two-year moratorium on licence fees.

DoT had asked companies to pay bank guarantees to securities all the overdue payments operators owe the Government. Some companies, who have heavy outstandings, are not even in a position to pay any money as bank guarantees.

Cellular operators owe the Government around Rs 1,300 crore. JT Mobiles has the largest outstandings of Rs 466 crore for its circles of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Punjab, Koshika Telecom with Rs 134 crore for its four circles Uttar pradesh (east and west), Bihar and Orissa, Aircell Digilink with Rs 134 crore for Haryana, UP (east) and Rajasthan, Fascel with Rs 163 crore for its Gujarat circle, Birla AT&T with Rs 187 crore for Gujarat and Maharashtra, Hexacom with Rs 28 crore for its Rajasthan and North east circles,Tatas with Rs 45.6 crore for its Andhra Pradesh, Modicom with Rs 60.4 crore for their Punjab and Karnataka, BPL-US West with Rs 68.4 crore for Maharashtra, Kerala and Tamil Nadu and Reliance with Rs 26,2 crore for Assam, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Bihar, Orissa and North East, RPG with Rs 2.3 crore for Madhya Pradesh.