Seeks views on the sector in 45-min conversations with each.
Communications and IT minister Kapil Sibal today met telecom industry leaders Sunil Bharti Mittal, Ratan Tata and Anil Ambani amidst a series of controversies in the sector, ranging from corporate rivalry, a spat of words between Tata and Rajya Sabha MP Rajeev Chandrasekhar to banning of 3G video calls and demand for more spectrum.
The meetings lasted 45 minutes each. It is expected that the telecom czars discussed issues impacting the sector and put forward their concerns. Sibal, who had recently said companies should not have a war of words publicly, also raised the issue in the meeting.
However, the discussions that took place between the minister and the leaders could not be independently ascertained.
The meeting came at a time when the sector is witnessing various issues after the resignation of former Communications and IT minister A Raja. After the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report alleged the government had incurred a loss of Rs 1.76 lakh crore while issuing new mobile licences in 2008 at a price fixed in 2001.
Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is conducting an inquiry on the issue and will question Raja in the case. Sibal has also set up a one-member panel to examine the policies and procedures adopted by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) to allot spectrum since 2001.
Since the past two weeks, Tata and Chandrasekhar are having war of words through letters. It all started when Chandrasekhar said Tata was a major beneficiary of the recent telecom policy by bagging spectrum out of turn.
During the meeting, the operators also expressed concerns over Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s (TRAI’s) latest report on spectrum management issues, in which the regulator had asked the government to charge additional spectrum beyond 6.2 MHz at the rate of 3G for which auction was held earlier this year. GSM operators including Bharti, Vodafone and Idea had opposed TRAI’s recommendations saying implementation of this report would be a retrograde step.
Sibal will hold more meetings with other telecom operators, including Idea Cellular and Vodafone in the next two days. DoT has also issued show cause notices to telecom firms on not meeting eligibility criteria and not fulfiling rollout obligations. Tata Teleservices has been demanding GSM spectrum in many circles.
Yesterday, DoT also issued a directive asking Reliance Communications and Tata Teleservices, the only two private players who have launched 3G mobile services, to stop the commercial launch of the 3G services till a lawful interception mechanism is in place.
