After the tariff hike

Telecom sector is still far from the desired stability

Both private-sector incumbents in the telecom sector have raised tariffs and the latest entrant is expected to follow suit. While most consumers will not be happy, the tariff hike is expected to bring back some financial sanity in the telecom business, which has witnessed a fair bit of disruption in recent years. Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea, the incumbents, have increased tariffs by an average of about 30 per cent for the prepaid segment, effective December 3. Reliance Jio has indicated it would follow suit later this week. According to analyst estimates, the hike is expected to boost the average