Telecom Dept looking into issues related to AGR payment: Sitharaman

The telecom department is looking into issues related to payment of statutory dues by mobile telephony services providers, Finance Minister Nirmala said on Wednesday.

In all, 15 telecom entities owe the government Rs 1.47 trillion in unpaid statutory dues — Rs 92,642 crore in unpaid licence fee and another Rs 55,054 crore in outstanding spectrum usage charges. Airtel and Vodafone Idea account for about 60 per cent of the estimated dues, which include interest and penalty for late payments.

Following the Supreme Court order on the adjusted gross revenue (AGR) of telecom companies, industry honchos Sunil Bharti Mittal and Kumar Mangalam Birla had met the finance minister.