AGR Dues: Modification Appeal Against Deadline Likely On 3 Feb

In a notification on Thursday, the Supreme Court said that it is likely to list the modification appeal filed by telecom companies against the deadline to pay AGR-related dues on 3 February.

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Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Idea and Tata Teleservices had filed for modification appeal to the apex court to negotiate terms of payment of adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues with the Department of Telecommunications (DoT).

The three companies had earlier filed review petitions before the court against the 24 October verdict on AGR dues. After the petition was dismissed, the three filed for modification.

Among them, Vodafone Idea and Bharti Airtel face the highest statutory dues of Rs 53,039 crore and Rs 35,586 crore, respectively. Large provisions towards the dues have hurt their revenue amid existing competition in the sector.

In October, the Supreme Court directed the Indian telcos to collectively pay over Rs 1.47 trillion as AGR dues in 90 days time.

The deadline of 23 January has been effectively skipped as they await the court's hearing on the modification appeal.