Another top Videsh Sanchar Nigam Ltd official has quit to join the private sector. Chief general manager in charge of planning D K Nimal has decided to join BSES Telecom _ the telecom arm of power utility BSES _ as chief executive officer.
Nimal joins Vikram Mehmi, who moved to Birla AT&T as chief financial officer and Neeraj Sonker, the Internet chief who has joined the Tatas' Internet venture.
Sources said some other senior- and middle-level officials too have quit or are planning to move to the private sector.
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VSNL sources confirmed that Nimal had put in his papers. He was formerly CGM in charge of marketing at VSNL.
With the private telecom sector beginning to look up, old public sector monopolies like VSNL have become the favourite poaching ground. VSNL was the first Internet service provider in India and still has a monopoly over international telephony.
When contacted, a senior BSES executive said, "We have made an offer to Nimal. The company's activities are poised to expand, and we need a good manager."
It is reliably learnt that Nimal will take over from mid-May. BTL has so far been headed by P D Chaukar as general manager. He will now report to Nimal. BSES director (finance) K H Mankad as well as a director on the board of BTL have also been taking a keen interest in the telecom venture.
The three-year-old BTL recently kicked off its Internet service under the name Powersurfer.net in Mumbai. The service has been initially launched in the northern suburbs of the city to which BSES also sells power. The company at present is offering the Internet service through a combination of optic fibre network, ethernet connections, leased lines and the dial-up route. After a year, the entire service will be offered through optic fibre network.
BSES chairman R V Shahi had stated at a press conference in Mumbai in March that BTL will be listed in about a year's time. This could be in the Indian or overseas bourses or a combination of both. BSES is also planning to enhance BTL's equity to Rs 70 crore by pumping in an additional Rs 65 crore.
VSNL net profit decreased by about 40 per cent in the 1999-2000 fiscal. The company recorded a net profit of Rs 799.2 crore compared to Rs 1,325 crore in 1998-99.
VSNL's income from operations, however, registered a 3.78 per cent increase to Rs 7,024.1 crore. The net profit was hit as a result of writing down investment in ICO to Rs 513 crore.