Telecom Secretary R. Chandrasekhar on Monday said the Department of Telecommunications has so far issued eight notices for termination of licences to various telecom operators for failing to comply with their roll-out obligations in various circles.
Nine more notices would be issued, Mr. Chandrasekhar told journalists here. He, however, did not name the operators. Earlier, DoT had issued 119 notices and collected over Rs.300 crore in penalties. Mobile operators have been given 60 days to respond to notices asking why their licences should not be terminated for their failure to roll out networks as per licence conditions. Till now, notices have been sent to Sistema Shyam TeleServices, Aircel and Etisalat DB.
The Comptroller and Auditor-General of India report on 2G spectrum had pointed out that most of the new players, who received licences in 2008, failed to comply with network roll-out obligations. Some of them are under the scanner of investigative agencies, including the CBI, the Enforcement Directorate and parliamentary panels.
