A number of telecom firms are in troubled waters with over a massive Rs 1.47 lakh crore of adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues to pay. These include top telcos -- Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea -- who owe about 60 percent. Meanwhile, India's central bank, the RBI, is very closely monitoring the fallout of the crisis on lenders by way of a default, if any, by telecom players. However, no red flags have been raised. While some telcos have made part-payments, there are some that are struggling with mounting losses and debt and the additional liability has raised concerns of them defaulting on existing loans.
AGR DUES: WHO OWES WHAT
Collectively, the telecom operators are liable to pay Rs 1.47 lakh crore in AGR dues as per a Supreme Court order. The deadline to clear the dues ended on January 23 but none, except Reliance Jio, paid the amount. Here's what the five telcos owe in AGR dues.
| COMPANY |
DUES |
| AIRTEL |
Rs 35,586 crore |
| VODAFONE IDEA |
Rs 53,000 crore |
| TATA TELESERVICES |
Rs 13,800 crore |
| BSNL |
Rs 4,989 crore |
| MTNL |
Rs 3,122 crore |
AGR DUES: AIRTEL
Airtel on Monday paid Rs 10,000 crore to the telecom department towards statutory dues. The company said it has paid the amount on behalf of Bharti Airtel, Bharti Hexacom and Telenor. The Sunil Mittal-led company, however, committed to make the balance payment after self-assessment exercise. As much as Rs 9,500 crore has been paid on behalf of Bharti Airtel (including Telenor India which merged with the company), and another Rs 500 crore for Bharti Hexacom. As per the government's assessment, Airtel owes nearly Rs 35,586 crore in statutory dues, including licence fee and spectrum usage charge.
AGR DUES: VODAFONE IDEA
According to DoT sources, Vodafone Idea made part payment of about Rs 2,500 crore to the telecom department towards statutory dues on Monday. The telecom firm said it will pay Rs 1,000 crore by Friday. The total the company owes is about Rs 53,000 crore.
AGR DUES: TATA TELESERVICES
According to DoT sources, the Tata group on Monday paid over Rs 2,190 crore to the telecom department towards statutory dues. The Tata Teleservices owes about Rs 13,800 crore.
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