Govt defers BSNL-MTNL merger, says BBNL-BSNL merger being thought of

The authorities has deferred the merger of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL) to due monetary causes which embody the excessive debt of MTNL, minister of state for communication Devusinh Chauhan advised the Parliament on Wednesday.

In a written reply to the Rajya Sabha, Chauhan mentioned that the federal government was nonetheless contemplating a proposal for the merger of Bharat Broadband Network Limited (BBNL) and BSNL.

The Indian Express had on January 9 reported that the federal government had determined to merge BBNL and BSNL by the top of this fiscal and that the latter was prone to end BharatWeb work, began by BBNL.

The merger of BSNL and MTNL, permitted by the Union cabinet in October 2019, was part of the revival bundle for each the telecom firms as part of which workers of each the telcos could be given the choice of selecting voluntary retirement from the service. The workers who selected to retire have been given a lump sum quantity together with some retirement advantages.

The Cabinet had then additionally permitted a revival bundle of Rs 29,937 crore for the 2 loss-making telecoms. The revival bundle contains elevating of Rs 15,000 crore sovereign bonds and monetising Rs 38,000 crore of property in subsequent 4 years.