MTNL Seeks Rs 1,151 Crore To Pay Interest On Sovereign Guarantee Bonds
The government allocated Rs 69,000 crore in the first revival package in 2019 to BSNL and MTNL that brought down operating costs.
Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd. has requested Rs 1,151.65 crore from the government for paying the interest on sovereign guarantee bonds in the current fiscal.
In a written reply to the Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for Communications, Pemmasani Chandra Sekhar, stated that the government has implemented several measures for the revival of MTNL and BSNL, including revival packages for both companies in 2019 and 2022.
"Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited has sought Rs 1,151.65 crore to meet the payment of interest on Sovereign Guarantee Bonds for Financial Year 2024-25," Sekhar said.
The minister's response was addressed to a query regarding MTNL's request for government funds to cover interest on its debt obligations. He also provided details on the demand and explained the reasons behind the financial losses of the state-owned telecom company.
The government allocated Rs 69,000 crore in the first revival package in 2019 to BSNL and MTNL that brought down operating costs, he said
"In 2022, revival package amounting to around Rs 1.64 lakh crore was given for measures such as infusing fresh capital, restructuring debt and meeting viability gap," Sekhar said.
The Rs 1.64 lakh crore revival package in 2022 was approved for upgrading BSNL services, allocating spectrum, de-stressing its balance sheet, and augmenting its fibre network by merging Bharat Broadband Nigam Ltd. with BSNL.
Separately, the government in the budget has proposed to allocate Rs 3,668.97 crore for the payment of the principal amount of MTNL bonds.
(With inputs from PTI).
