Idea-Vodafone deal to be revealed with Grasim-Nuvo voting

Birla expects this to assuage Grasim shareholders' concerns over Nuvo's exposure to debt-laden Idea

The Kumar Mangalam Birla group is keen to announce the merger of Idea Cellular with Vodafone India at the same time as it sends out voting notices to shareholders of Grasim Industries and Aditya Birla Nuvo (Nuvo) on their merger in the first week of March.

Voting on the Grasim-Nuvo proposal will remain open for a month. Group officials expect concerns of Grasim’s shareholders over Nuvo’s exposure to Idea Cellular will be mitigated with the announcement.

Falling returns on capital employed of Idea Cellular and massive cash requirements in the telecom business because of Jio’s entry were a big concern