AGR dues time to hit industry: ICRA

The relatively shorter timeframe granted to telcos for payment of AGR dues will exert additional pressure on the cash flows, necessitates “sizeable” ARPU hike, and may have longstanding impact on industry structure, ICRA said on Tuesday.

The Supreme Court has granted 10 years to telecom firms such as Vodafone Idea and Bharti Airtel for paying the Adjusted Gross Revenue (AGR)-related dues to the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) with certain conditions.

The apex court asked telcos to pay 10 per cent of the AGR-related dues by March 31, 2021.

“The proposed payment pattern adds to the burden of the industry which was already saddled with elevated debt levels,” ICRA said in a statement.