As Vi gets SC lifeline, Airtel eyes similar relief on AGR

A day after the Supreme Court called upon the Centre to reassess all adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues of Vodafone Idea up to FYI7, Bharti Airtel vice-chairman and managing director Gopal Vittal said the company will approach the government for a similar reassessment in the coming days.

- Jatin Grover

‘Welcoming the ruling, Vittal told analysts in an earnings call on Tuesday that Airtel has always maintained the 2019 AGR judgement was a “body blow” to the industry, adding that it was “disappointing that even errors of calculation were not entertained”.

When asked if the telco will need to approach the court since the order is applicable only to Vodafone Idea, Vittal said, “We will be taking it one step at a time. So first, we will reach out to the government and that is something the company will do over the course of the coming days.”

‘AGR represents a portion of a telecom company’s gross revenue that is considered for regulatory payments. Telcos pay 8% of AGR as licence fee to the govern‘ment, including contributions to the Digital Bharat Nidhi fund, which is at 5% of AGR.

AGR dues for Vodafone Idea and Bharti Airtel to the Centre are %83,400 crore and about 40,000 crore, respectively, as reported by Mint earlier.