Etisalat DB, Uninor pay penalty for missing rollout obligations

Some new operators, including Etisalat DB and Uninor, have paid penalties to the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) for failing to launch mobile phone services on time.

Etisalat DB, a joint venture between Swan Telecom and UAE-based Etisalat, paid about Rs 10 crore to DoT for failing to meet its roll-out obligations in four circles.

“Etisalat DB Telecom Pvt Ltd has received a communication from DoT for imposition of liquidated damages towards roll-out obligation for the first year in respect of four telecom circles aggregating Rs 9.9 crore. Etisalat DB has made payments for Rs 9.9 crore under protest,” the company said in a statement.

Uninor, a joint venture between realty company Unitech and Norway’s Telenor, said it had paid the penalty as demanded by DoT, but ‘under protest’. It didn’t say how much it paid.

“Various factors, including delay in clearances required for each site, new last-minute pre-launch testing requirements and new equipment security clearance processes, came in the way of roll out and were beyond our control,” the company said in a statement. Uninor said it had requested DoT to consider these in its assessments.

“As a serious long-term operator with considerable presence in India, we intend to continue delivering the benefits of competition to customers in the country.”

Sistema Shyam is also understood to have paid the penalty to the government.

DoT started issuing show-cause notices to telecom companies on this issue around mid-December. The companies were given 15 days to respond. According to licence conditions, the licensees are required to roll out the services in 90 per cent service area in metros and 10 per cent at district headquarters in other service areas within a year of receiving licence.

A maximum of Rs 7 crore per licencing area is the penalty for missing roll-out obligations.