BSNL, Bharat Broadband Network merger approved by govt: Telecom Minister
Premium- Cabinet approves merger of BSNL and Bharat Broadband Network Ltd, Telecom Minister said
Union Cabinet approved the merger of BSNL and Bharat Broadband Network, Telecom Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw informed on Wednesday. He further informed that the government has approved a ₹1.64 lakh crore package for the revival of state-owned telecom firm BSNL. Elaborating on the same, the minister also said that the package has three elements -- to improve services, de-stress the balance sheet and expansion of fibre network.
Briefing reporters on the decision taken by the Union Cabinet, he said the government will make administrative allocation of spectrum BSNL needs to offer 4G services.
To de-stress the balance sheet, ₹33,000 crore statutory dues will be converted into equity and a similar amount of bank loans will be repaid through the issue of low-interest bonds, he added.
BSNL has struggled to win customers as Reliance Industries' telecoms arm Jio and rivals Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea have rolled out 4G services and aggressively cut data prices.
Meanwhile, speaking about the stupendous response to the 5G spectrum auctions on an opening day, the Vaishnaw said, “The response on the first day exceeded all expectations and will surpass the record of 2015, when revenue collection from auction stood at ₹1.09 lakh crore." Notably, even the 700 MHz band, which had not seen any takers in the 2016 and 2021 auctions, received bids this time.
Firms run by tycoons Mukesh Ambani, Sunil Bharti Mittal and Gautam Adani as well as Vodafone Idea had put in bids of about ₹1.45 lakh crore to buy fifth-generation (5G) airwaves on Tuesday.
The day-two of the bidding process began at 10 AM on Wednesday and it is widely expected to conclude much ahead of the scheduled closing time of 6 PM. Sources said the fifth round of bidding is currently underway.
The 5G spectrum offers ultra-high speeds (about 10 times faster than 4G), lag-free connectivity, and can enable billions of connected devices to share data in real time. The government will allocate the spectrum in record time and 5G services are expected to be rolled out by September.
(With inputs from agencies)
Catch all the Business News, Market News, Breaking News Events and Latest News Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates.
More Less