Vodafone Idea is on its way to becoming the largest telecom operator in India as the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) on Monday gave a conditional nod to the merger between the second- and the third- largest telcos in the country.

UK-headquartered telecom major Vodafone and Kumar Mangalam Birla-controlled Idea Cellular cannot operate as one company till they pay more than Rs 72 billion to the government as one-time spectrum charges.

The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) will seek further clarification from the additional solicitor general (ASG) regarding the Vodafone-Idea merger.

On being asked by Communications Minister Manoj Sinha, the DoT had written to the ASG seeking his opinion on whether the merger should be given a go-ahead without claiming the charges regarding spectrum, which were sub-judice.

New Delhi: The merger of Vodafone-Idea seems to have run into a bureaucratic hiccup with the department of telecom seeking legal opinion on the spectrum charges that telecom players need to pay before the deal is cleared.

New Delhi: The merger of Vodafone-Idea seems to have run into a bureaucratic hiccup with the department of telecom seeking legal opinion on the spectrum charges that telecom players need to pay before the deal is cleared.

The mega-merger deal of Idea Cellular and Vodafone India did not meet the expected June 30 timeline. A source told PTI that the telecom department is looking to raise a fresh demand of around Rs 4,700 crore related to one-time spectrum charges (OTSC) on the company. DoT will ask Vodafone to either clear dues or furnish bank guarantee before merger with Idea.

Keeping its vigil on service quality in the sector, Trai has imposed penalties on leading operators, including Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel, Vodafone and Idea Cellular, for failing to meet various Quality of Service benchmarks in the December quarter, according to a source.

Around Rs 31 lakh fine has been imposed on Reliance Jio, the newest entrant in the telecom sector whose aggressive offerings have led to a bruising tariff war in the market.

The mega-merger deal of Idea Cellular and Vodafone India may not meet the expected June 30 timeline as the telecom department is looking to raise a fresh demand of around Rs 4,700 crore, a source said.

The demand will be raised from Vodafone India before its merger with Idea Cellular.

The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) is expected to clear the merger of Vodafone India and Idea Cellular early next week. Both the companies, however, may have to pay one-time-spectrum-charges (OTSC) dues, though these are under challenge in the court. The DoT is expected to ask Vodafone for Rs 5,650 crore – or a bank guarantee – and Idea for Rs 2,113 crore for its OTSC dues.

NEW DELHI: The telecom department has received legal opinion on the issue of raising demand for dues pertaining to Vodafone, ahead of the proposed mega-merger of Vodafone and Idea Cellular in the Indian market, according to a senior government official.

The legal opinion had been sought by DoT (Department of Telecom) recently as some of the demands for arrears are sub judice.

Idea Cellular on Tuesday said it has completed the rollout of VoLTE services in all its 20 4G circles with the country’s third largest telecom operator announcing the launch of VoLTE in five circles — Himachal Pradesh, Odisha, Assam, North East Service Area (NESA) and Jammu & Kashmir.

“With the completion of the last phase of VoLTE rollout, Idea is now the only operator to offer pan India integrated 2G, 3G, 4G and VoLTE services.

The telecom department is likely to approve the merger of Vodafone India and Idea Cellular today that will create the country's largest mobile service operator with proposed name of Vodafone Idea Ltd.

"DoT is expected to clear the Vodafone-Idea merger on Monday. The certificate will be handed to them," said an official source.

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