FDI in telecom zooms up to Rs 9,815 cr in H1

The inflow of foreign direct investment (FDI) in the Indian telecom sector has shot up to Rs 9,815 crore in the first half of the current financial year, the Lok Sabha was informed today.

"The actual FDI inflow in the telecom sector during April-October 2008 was to the tune of Rs 8,924 crore, which has increased to Rs 9,815 crore during April-September 2009," Minister of State for Communications and Information Technology Gurudas Kamat said in a written reply to the lower house of Parliament.

The government has also collected Rs 1,396.12 crore from telecom operators during April-July 2009 as part of the Universal Service Levy, he added.

These levies fund starting telecom services in rural and remote areas in the country.

Also, he said, the government has issued instructions to state-run BSNL to not procure resources from Chinese companies for deployment in sensitive regions defined as states having border with China, Bangladesh, Myanmar and Pakistan.

Further, Kamat said the government has sought recommendations of the telecom regulator Trai on allocation of access spectrum and pricing, and will take its decision thereafter.

Kamat also informed that 21.70 lakh land line telephone connections of BSNL and its another telecom PSU MTNL have been surrendered in the ongoing fiscal (up to October 2009). It also includes the disconnections on account of non-payment of bills.

This is against 45.09 lakh connections surrendered in FY09, he added.

The minister also informed that the government has introduced the franchise model for opening post offices and 850 such outlets in urban areas of the country.

He added that the revenues from sale of stamps and stationary has declined 2.81 per cent in 2008-09 to Rs 45 crore as against the year-ago fiscal.