Bharti to approach Maran for level playing field

A day after welcoming the decision to increase competition in the national long distance (NLD) telephony business by cutting levies, telecom major Bharti today said it will take up the issue of "level-playing" field vis-a-vis new players with the governmet.

"It is a matter of natural justice and established principle that when a new policy welcomes new players, existing players should be ensured of a 'no-worse off' situation. So, we will approach telecom minister again on the issue of level-playing field," Akhil Gupta, joint MD and group CFO of Bharti, said today.

The field for the new and old players must be equated, he said, adding that governmet should look at the option of returning the unexpired part of the licence fee paid by existing operators.

 "We have to talk to the government again. While it is entirely the discretion of DoT, we are hopeful that the principle of natural justice will be upheld," he said.

The government had announced a steep cut in the entry fee and revenue share of international long distance (ILD) and NLD operators yesterday to Rs 2.5 crore and 6%, respectively, from the current Rs 100 crore and Rs 25 crore, respectively.

Existing players like Bharti, Reliance and Tata have paid over Rs 1,500 crore as entry fee for the licences.