Reliance Communications Q4 net fall smaller than expected

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Reliance Communications Ltd reported a smaller-than-expected 8.7 percent fall in quarterly profit, helped by higher other income, even as the country's third-biggest mobile carrier by customers struggles with its heavy debt load.

Consolidated net profit fell to 3.03 billion rupees for its fiscal fourth quarter to end-March, from 3.32 billion rupees reported a year earlier, said the company, controlled by billionaire Anil Ambani.

Analysts had expected the company to report a net profit of 1.29 billion rupees, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

(Reporting by Devidutta Tripathy; Editing by Jeremy Laurence)