BSNL-MTNL merger may be completed in 24 months: Prasad
Business | November 20, 2019 18:42 ISTThe government on Wednesday said the merger of state-owned telecom companies BSNL and MTNL is likely to be completed in 18-24 months.
The government on Wednesday said the merger of state-owned telecom companies BSNL and MTNL is likely to be completed in 18-24 months.
Last month, the Facebook-owned company had revealed that Indian journalists and human rights activists were among those globally spied upon by unnamed entities using Pegasus spyware.
To a question on penalty imposed on telecom companies, Prasad said the outstanding SUC (spectrum usage charges) dues of various telecom service providers as on October 31, 2019, added to Rs 55,054 crore.
The BJP on Thursday launched a scathing attack on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi after the Supreme Court gave a clean chit to the government on the Rafale deal and said he lied in Parliament and stooped to the "shameful" extent of misquoting the top court deliberately
The Union Cabinet had last month approved a revival package for BSNL and MTNL which includes a voluntary retirement scheme (VRS) for their staff. The aim is to reduce the employee cost of the two companies by offering VRS to their staff aged 50 years and above based on the Gujarat model with some modifications
The government on Wednesday hiked the minimum support price for wheat by Rs 85 to Rs 1,925 a quintal and for pulses by up to Rs 325 per quintal. A decision in this regard was taken at a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
In a move that will benefit 40 lakh people, the Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved a proposal to grant ownership rights to people living in unauthorised colonies in Delhi, Union Minister Prakash Javadekar said.
Digital India initiative should be leveraged to transform rural India and create avenues for those in smaller towns and cities, IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said on Monday.
Union Communications, Electronics and Information Technology Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Monday said the Data Protection Bill is ready and would be placed in Parliament soon.
Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Saturday took a dig at Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad for linking the Indian economy's health with box office collection of three Bollywood films and said even China measures its economy on parameters like power, credit and freight.
The comments came after the government slashed the tax rate for companies by almost 10 percentage points to 25.17 per cent and offered a lower rate of 17.01 per cent for new manufacturing firms in a bid to bolster economic growth rate from a six-year low by incentivising investments to help create jobs.
The event, jointly organized by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) and the Cellular Operators Association of India, will have over 40 participating countries, more than 300 exhibitors and over 250 speakers this year.
As per data available with the Telecom Ministry till May 2019, Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL) and Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) have provided an aggregate of 757 Internet connections to members of Parliament.
Lok Sabha witnessed uproar on Friday over Samajwadi Party MP Azam Khan's sexist remark against BJP legislator Rama Devi. Slamming Khan, Union Minister Smriti Irani during the Zero Hour, warned him and said that he can't misbehave with a woman and get away, regardless of a party she belongs to, cannot be insulted.
Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said the Prime Minister Narendra Modi government has already repealed 1,458 old and archaic Acts and the move to scrap 58 more laws is a part of the same exercise.
Over 2,100 URLs (Uniform Resource Locators) were blocked on social media platforms in the first six months of 2019, Parliament was informed on Wednesday. A total of 633, 1,385 and 2,799 URLs were ordered for blocking in 2016, 2017 and 2018, respectively, Electronics and IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.
Communications Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said the government is taking steps to make BSNL more competitive and these include up-gradation of technology and capital infusion.
"There is a plan to install 57,559 towers for mobile services in the rural areas during the financial year 2019-20 by telecom service providers," Communications Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said in a written reply in Lok Sabha.
Over 1,000 mobile towers and 500 telephone exchanges of cash-strapped Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) are not functional due to non-payment of electricity bills, Parliament was informed on Wednesday.
Outlining an ambitious vision for Digital India 2.0, the minister exhorted Indian IT companies and its apex software body Nasscom to participate in creation of 'Digital Villages' in the country, and supplement the government's efforts in the digital literacy movement.
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