Verification drive retards mobile firms' growth

Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai reported declining numbers

Even though July saw 3.9 million GSM mobile subscribers being added, the implementation of verification rules seems to have affected growth in certain circles.

According to Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) data, some operators in Haryana, Chennai, Mumbai, Kolkata, UP (West) and Orissa circles reported a decline in the new user addition.

Bharti's net mobile subscribers in Haryana dropped to 4,56,727, a loss of 17,355 subscribers from the 4,74,082 in June. BPL, which operates in Mumbai circle, also saw a drop of 12,500, with the net subscriber base in the circle dropping to 12,84,778 in July from 12,97,278 in June.

Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) saw negative growth in five circles - Kolkata, Chennai, Haryana, UP (West) and Orissa. However, barring BPL, both BSNL and Bharti posted positive growth with net additions of 4.03 per cent and 5.49 per cent, respectively.

The overall GSM subscriber base in India grew to 82.4 million in July from 78.5 million in June, recording an overall growth of 5.01 per cent over the previous month.

It may be recalled that DoT has conducted a verification drive in various circles including Haryana, Chennai and Mumbai. It had also asked operators to physically verify all subscribers, both pre- and post-paid, and immediately disconnect all unverified connections.

All operators, barring Tata Teleservices Ltd, have opposed the 100 per cent physical verification drive and have proposed a 10 per cent physical verification and 1 100 per cent document verification.