New Delhi, Apr 23 (PTI) The government has no plans to increase its shareholding in Vodafone Idea (VIL) as it does not want the telecom operator to turn into a public sector undertaking (PSU), Communications Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia has said.

Sending out a strong message to Vodafone Idea, Scindia told PTI in an interview that it is now the telco's job to ensure it performs.

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After the recent conversion of Rs 36,950 crore of outstanding spectrum auction dues into equity, the government now holds 48.99 per cent shares in Vodafone Idea Ltd. Prior to this, the government's stake was about 22.6 per cent.

It is pertinent to mention that any additional stake could potentially turn the company into a PSU - bringing it under the administrative control of the government which would then get to appoint the board. Also the company would come under the purview of CAG and other oversight bodies, under such circumstances.

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"It is now their (VIL's) job to ensure that they perform. Government today has 49 per cent of the company. There is no intention for the government to make that into a PSU. So we will stick to 49 per cent," Scindia said.

On his assessment of impact of dues conversion on VIL's health and future competitiveness, specially given wide skepticism that the telco may still struggle to meet future payment obligations, the minister said: "That question should be directed at VIL...it is now their job to ensure that they perform".

Analysts have been saying that government relief to Vodafone Idea into through dues-to-equity conversion may ease near-term liquidity constraints for the the telco, but that structural challenges remain for the operator with factors like stabilisation of subscriber base, tariff hikes, long-pending debt raise, and further relief on dues being vital for the telco's long-term survival.

On the issue of MTNL's default on bank loans, the minister noted that it has substantial land bank and informed that same will be monetised for clearing dues of banks and debt.

"MTNL now has a large amount of asset base in terms of its land bank. We are today progressing on that. And through NLMC - National Land Monetisation Committee - that land will be divested and through the proceeds of that land, all dues to banks and debt will be taken care of," Scindia assured.

He did not specify timelines that may be involved for such monetisation, and said he is persuing the matter.

"NLMC is under DIPAM and the Finance Ministry. I am pursuing with them. As soon as that's done that will be taken care of," the minister said.

It is pertinent to mention here that state-run telecom firm MTNL has defaulted on bank loans worth Rs 8,346.24 crore from seven public sector banks, according to a statutory filing by the company over the weekend.

The loss-making public sector telecom firm's total debt obligations reached Rs 33,568 crore as on March 31, 2025, according to the filing dated April 19.

The total loan default includes Rs 3,633.42 crore of debt raised from Union Bank of India, Rs 2,374.49 crore of Indian Overseas Bank, Rs 1,077.34 crore of Bank of India, Rs 464.26 crore Punjab National Bank, Rs 350.05 crore from State Bank of India, Rs 266.30 crore from UCO Bank and Rs 180.3 crore along with principal and interest payment.

The defaults in loan payment occurred between August 2024 to February 2025. The total debt on the company comprises Rs 8,346 crore bank loan, Rs 24,071 crore sovereign guarantee (SG) bond, and loan of Rs 1,151 crore from Department of Telecom (DoT) for paying SG bond interest.

The minister said Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) has scripted an "amazing turnaround" and lauded it for delivering a "stellar performance".

"It's been an arduous task and it has been an amazing turnaround. I must, on this occasion, also thank Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his belief in BSNL and providing those relief packages for BSNL without which we would have not seen this day," Scindia said.

BSNL during in the October to December quarter of FY25 has delivered net profit (Rs 262 crore) for the first time in 18 years.

"After 72 quarters, we posted net profit....It is my firm belief that as we roll out 4G on an 'Atmanirbhar' solution...only the fifth in the world to do so (there are only four other countries that have produced 4G technology)...India has produced 4G technology. We are rolling out 100,000 towers. As of date, 90,000 towers have been installed," he said.

About 74,000 towers have been commissioned.

"It is my fervent hope that by July or so, we will roll out the balance towers. We then have to stabilise the network...then as a next step, ensure quality of service..the number of call drops, the amount of latency, the number of interruptions...And once that is stabilised, then I intend to move the 4G network, convert that into a 5G network," he said.

Doing so would require an additional equipment, include BTS, to graduate BSNL from 4G on to 5G.

"The next step would be then to also strengthen this network because we will need more than 100,000 towers. So that's the path forward. But I think it is important to keep BSNL customer-centric. We are also putting in place a number of software so that we can connect with the consumer, as customer service is paramount to us," the Minister stated.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)