DoT may ask BSNL not to use Chinese equipment in 4G upgradation: Report

The development comes at a time when Indian and Chinese armies are engaged in a standoff in Pangong Tso, Galwan Valley, Demchok and Daulat Beg Oldie in eastern Ladakh.

The Department of Telecom (DoT) is set to ask state-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) not to use Chinese telecom gear in its 4G upgradation, which is being supported as part of the company revival package, according to sources.

The development comes at a time when Indian and Chinese armies are engaged in a standoff in Pangong Tso, Galwan Valley, Demchok and Daulat Beg Oldie in eastern Ladakh.

The standoff has stirred anti-China sentiments in India, with protesters and some trade bodies like CAIT calling for a boycott of Chinese products in protest to border standoff.

Sources privy to talks in the Telecom Department said it has been decided that BSNL will be asked not to use Chinese equipment in upgradation to 4G network, which is being supported by its revival package.

The department may also convey that the tender in this regard may need to be reworked. A similar message will be conveyed to Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL), sources said.

The department is even considering measures to urge private telecom operators to bring down their dependence on Chinese-made telecom equipment.

In the past, there have been concerns around network security of Chinese equipment, sources pointed out.

Unable to send files via WeTransfer? ISP might have blocked it on DoT order

Founded in 2009 in the Netherlands, WeTransfer allows users to upload and share file of up to 2GB for free at one time. Paying users can share files of up to 20 GB per transfer.

WeTransfer seems to have been blocked by some internet service providers (ISPs) in India. This came after the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), in an order on May 18, directed all licence holders or internet service providers to block the website in the ‘interest of national security or public interest’. Interestingly, the DoT letter does not specify a reason for blocking the website.

The popular file sharing platform in a blog post said, “At this moment in time, WeTransfer seems to be blocked and unavailable in India. We are working hard to understand the reasoning behind this block, as well as how to get it reverted as soon as possible."

The block, however, seems to have affected only limited batch of users. On June 2, the service worked fine to transfer a 1GB file and its recipient was able to download the file, too. It seems that not all ISPs are affected by the block and there is a partial ban on the services of the file sharing platform.

WeTransfer took on Twitter to let users know that the issue persists and the company is investigating it. However, it also clarifies that removing such blocks is out of company’s control. It also suggests using virtual private network services to access the platform to send files.

Founded in 2009 in the Netherlands, WeTransfer allows users to upload and share file of up to 2GB for free at one time. Paying users can share files of up to 20 GB per transfer.

DCC may discuss telcos' AGR issue on Friday; COAI presses for relief

The industry has made a string of demands including a moratorium, staggered mode of payment, lower licence fee and setting up of a tariff floor.

The Digital Communications Commission, the apex decision-making body in the telecom sector, is expected to meet on Friday to deliberate on a relief package for the financially stressed industry.

As directed by the Supreme Court, telecom companies need to pay Rs 1.47 trillion to the government towards licence fee and spectrum charge dues linked to adjusted gross revenue (AGR).

Of this, Bharti Airtel needs to pay Rs 35,500 crore and Vodafone Idea more than Rs 50,000 crore—they have paid just a fraction of the total till now.

The industry has made a string of demands including a moratorium, staggered mode of payment, lower licence fee and setting up of a tariff floor.

Sources said that any relief for the sector would come with riders.

“They (companies) cannot manipulate us, they have to make further payments before even seeking relief,” a Department of Telecommunications (DoT) official said.

The DCC, formerly known as the Telecom Commission, comprises officials from the departments of telecommunications, electronics and information technology, revenue, and think tank NITI Aayog.

The DoT is expected to make a presentation to the commission regarding the possible relief scenarios.

Cellular Operators’ Association of India, a body representing the telecom industry, on Thursday urged the Union government to step in so that the telecom sector can be brought back on track.

COAI, in a letter to Telecom Secretary Anshu Prakash, asked for easier terms for payment of statutory dues by telcos, including extension of loans at lower interest rates to cover the AGR liabilities, as also fast implementation of floor prices, to rescue the troubled sector.

AGR issue: Top FinMin, NITI, DoT officials talk relief measures for telcos

The telecom department officials remained tightlipped after the high-level meeting on Sunday.

An inter-ministerial group comprising officials from the finance ministry, NITI Aayog, and Department of Telecommunications on Sunday discussed urgent relief measures that could be extended to the telecom industry on adjusted gross revenue (AGR) issue.

The telecom department officials remained tightlipped after the high-level meeting on Sunday. The meeting comes at a time when the companies stare at Rs 1.47 trillion in unpaid dues — Rs 92,642 crore in unpaid licence fee and another Rs 55,054 crore in outstanding spectrum usage charges.

Of the estimated dues that include interest and penalty for late payments, Airtel and Vodafone Idea owe about 60 per cent. Airtel has raised $3 billion in the past few months and is expected to have sufficient funds to tide over the AGR crisis. Vodafone Idea, which has paid just 7 per cent of its total Rs 53,000-crore statutory dues, remains vulnerable.

Bharti Airtel Chairman Sunil Mittal had last week appealed to the government for cut in levies and taxes, in order to pull the sector out of what he had described was an “unprecedented crisis”.

The government, meanwhile, is looking to strike a balance between complying with the Supreme Court order on AGR dues, ensuring health of the sector and safeguarding consumer interest.

Both Mittal and Vodafone Idea Chairman Kumar Mangalam Birla continued to meet top government functionaries throughout the last week to seek prompt measures that would offer a breather to the sector.

A top government official had recently said attempts were being made to balance the need for health of the sector, consumer interest while complying with the Supreme Court order on statutory dues.

Although the official had not elaborated, sector watchers had said the statement alluded to the government keen on ensuring adequate competition by retaining the present three-plus-one model of competition (three private players and one public sector company). The statutory dues arose after Supreme Court, in October last year, upheld the government’s position on including revenue from non-core businesses in calculating the annual AGR of telecom companies, a share of which is paid as licence and spectrum fee to the exchequer.

AGR dues: Telecom firms, DoT discuss part upfront payment by March 31

The move suggested by telcos, if executed, will bring in additional revenues of Rs 22,077 crore from Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Idea, and the Tatas in this fiscal year.

BS : Leading telcos are discussing a proposal with the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) regarding paying part of their AGR dues upfront by March 31 if the Supreme Court gives a favourable verdict on their “modification petition”, which will be heard this week.

The companies have offered to pay upfront the principal amount due for licence fees and spectrum usage charges (SUCs) on the basis of adjusted gross revenue (AGR). This amount will not include the interest, the penalty, and the interest on the penalty. The proposed upfront amount will be the difference between the AGR calculations done by the DoT and what the telcos have paid as licence fees and SUCs over the years based on their interpretation of AGR. The Supreme Court had in October upheld the DoT definition of AGR, which resulted in a Rs 1.47 trillion additional payout bill for the telcos.

The move suggested by telcos, if executed, will bring in additional revenues of Rs 22,077 crore from Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Idea, and the Tatas in this fiscal year.

This is in addition to the budgeted target of Rs 50,519 crore as telecom revenues in 2019-20.

If all other telcos (including those that have stopped operations) were to make the upfront payment, the government will get around Rs 34,773 crore (excluding those of Reliance Jio, which has paid Rs 195 crore). These include Rs 23,182 crore as licence fees and Rs 11,591 crore as SUC. The three telcos, through the new petition, have requested the court to give them permission to discuss with the DoT the terms and timing of the payment of the remaining dues. The upfront amount represents around 25 per cent of their dues and is in many ways in line with what the telcos paid as deferred spectrum. In deferred spectrum, the upfront payment varied from 25 per cent to 30 per cent, depending on the band in which they bought spectrum, with the rest payable in 16 years with a two-year moratorium.

If the same formula is implemented (where a two-year moratorium is given just after the upfront payment), telcos will not have to pay both for deferred spectrum (the government has allowed a moratorium recently), totalling more than Rs 50,000 crore for the next two years, and will have no payout on AGR either. This will give a cushion for many players like Vodafone Idea to tide over their financial problems.