Delayed rollout: 18 more telecom firms to get DoT notices

The department of telecommunications (DoT) will soon issue 18 more show-cause notices to mobile licence holders for not meeting service rollout obligations. It had issued two notices earlier this month.

"Two notices have already been issued and 18 more will be issued soon for cancellation of licences for not meeting rollout obligations," DoT secretary R Chandrashekhar told newspersons in New Delhi. He said they would get 60 days to reply.

He refused to name the companies that will get these notices, but reports suggest they will be issued to Aircel, Videocon, Unitech Wireless, Reliance Communications, Sistema, Uninor, and Loop Telecom.

The department has already sent licence cancellation notices to Etisalat DB and Idea Cellular. Etisalat DB received the notice for cancellation of licences in the Mumbai and Delhi circles and Idea Cellular for the Punjab circle.

Under the Unified Access Service Licence (UASL) scheme, a telecom operator is required to start services in 10 per cent of the district headquarters and towns in a circle within one year of receiving the sanctioned spectrum. Any violation of these norms may lead to a penalty or cancellation of the licence.

The DoT move came after the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India recommended cancelling 38 licences for the operators' failure to comply with the DoT guidelines. These operators include Loop Telecom (14 circles), Sistema (10), Uninor (8), Aircel (4) and Etisalat DB (2).