Set a floor for tariffs by April 1, say telcos

New Delhi: Mobile phone carriers called on the government to set a floor for tariffs by April 1, allow a three-year moratorium followed by 15-year payment schedule for adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues, and abolish the practice of taking bank guarantees, as among steps to restore the heath of the debt-laden industry.

“Banks are currently unwilling to take any risk w.r.t. telecom sector and are constantly asking TSPs (telecom service providers) to reduce their exposures by refusing to issue new BGs (bank guarantees) or even to renew the bank guarantees,” Rajan Mathews, director general of Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), said in a letter dated February 26 to telecom secretary Anshu Prakash. “There is a need to give a clear message to banks that government is there to support the sector,” he added.