VIL needs promoters, govt to work in tandem to attract new investors

The struggling telecom service provider urgently needs the promoters and the government to work in tandem to attract new investors

For the last few weeks, there have been hectic parleys between Vodafone Idea Ltd’s (VIL) promoters and the government. With the government awaiting a funding plan from the company, Kumar Mangalam Birla, who rejoined the board this April after resigning earlier, met Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman followed by a meeting with Communications Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw. “We are waiting for a proposal, hopefully it should happen soon,” said a senior Department of Telecom (DoT) official.

The equation is simple. The two promoters, who together hold 50 per cent in VIL, have invested over Rs. 1.60 trillion and are not looking at