New Delhi / No plans to shut down BSNL, says Telecom Secretary

The government is not planning to shut down loss-making Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), Telecom Secretary Anshu Prakash said. This follows reports claiming that the Finance Ministry has suggested that the 'sick' state-run telecom operator be closed down. BSNL has also clarified that a plan for its revival by the government was under active consideration.

Livemint : Oct 13, 2019, 09:24 AM

New Delhi: There is no plan to shut down state-run telecom operator Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd, Telecom secretary Anshu Prakash said on Friday.

“News reports emerging of government thinking of shutting down the operator are not true," Prakash said at the sidelines of an event here.

This comes a day after BSNL said that it will continue to offer telecom services in the country.

The company’s statement had come two days after the Financial Express newspaper reported that the finance ministry has suggested that the sick PSU be closed down.

“Recently there has been (an article) published in the media about closure of BSNL. In this regard, it is clarified that there is a plan under active consideration for revival of BSNL by the government by giving suitable package in terms of VRS and 4G spectrum and allowing monetisation of assets available with BSNL," the state-run telecom operator said in a statement on Thursday.

To be sure, BSNL’s operations are not all smooth. For the first time in its history, BSNL delayed its February salaries.

The company has been making losses continuously since 2009-10 and has been declared declared ‘incipient sick’.