COAI urges govt to offer telcos 10-15 yrs for dues settlement
Industry body COAI is pitching for a 10-15 year payment schedule for telecom companies to pay their past statutory dues, beginning with part-payment upfront and a two-year moratorium.
This formula of easier payment schedule to meet statutory obligations would offer the much-needed reprieve to telcos such as Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea, whose combined liabilities after the recent SC verdict run into billions of dollars, according to the Cellular Operators' Association of India (COAI).
COAI Director General Rajan Mathews said the industry requires a debt package for payment of past statutory dues with a two-year moratorium, as in the case of payment made for spectrum bought in auctions.
"Give telecom companies 10-15 years for payment of the full adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues, a two-year moratorium and an interest rate at interbank borrowing rate levels that is at around 4-5 per cent," Mathews said.
There could be an upfront payment of about 15%, which is the equivalent of the principle AGR amounts, he added.
Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Idea, and Tata Teleservices have, meanwhile, jointly filed a modification application in the Supreme Court seeking more time to pay the statutory dues.
The fresh plea for relief on the payment schedule came after the Supreme Court, earlier this month, dismissed the review petitions filed by telecom companies against the apex court's October 24, 2019, verdict.
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