Govt to defer BSNL/MTNL merger

A Group of Ministers (GoM) led by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has reportedly deferred the planned merger of state-owned telcos Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL), the Financial Express writes, citing an official government source. According to the unnamed source, the GoM’s decision was based on MTNL’s high levels of debt, whilst merging the salary structure of the two organisations was said to have been a further barrier to the tie-up. The two companies have previously been separated geographically, with MTNL serving the Delhi and Mumbai circles whilst BSNL provided services to the rest of the country, but BSNL’s licence was recently extended to cover the two metro circles, and the larger firm is set to be awarded 4G spectrum in the same areas, rather than MTNL.