Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) is the only state-owned telecom company in India. According to a report by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG), Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Jio allegedly failed to pay BSNL dues amounting to Rs 1,757.56 crore for the use of its towers and other infrastructure. This has resulted in significant financial losses for the government.
The CAG report highlights that between May 2014 and March 2024, BSNL did not recover Rs 1,757.56 crore from Reliance Jio Info comm Limited (RJIL) for infrastructure usage. Additionally, BSNL incurred a loss of Rs 38.36 crore as the company failed to deduct a portion of the licensing fee from revenue.
Also Read | Jyotiraditya Scindia hails Maha govt for implementation of Bharat Net Phase I.
In 2014, BSNL and Jio signed a master service agreement, allowing Jio to use BSNL’s passive infrastructure, including towers, power, and space, in exchange for a fee. However, BSNL did not strictly enforce the agreement and did not collect the required payments from Jio. Moreover, Jio reportedly deployed additional technology on BSNL’s infrastructure without being billed for it.
Due to BSNL’s negligence, the government suffered a financial setback of Rs 1,757.56 crore. Furthermore, BSNL’s failure to deduct its share of the licensing fee from revenue payments to telecom infrastructure providers led to an additional loss of ₹38.36 crore. Neither BSNL nor the government has issued an official statement regarding the matter.
While BSNL struggled with financial losses, Jio allegedly benefited from free access to its resources, gaining a competitive edge in the telecom market. According to TRAI’s December data, Jio is now India’s largest telecom service provider, with 46.51 crore users, followed by Airtel, which has 38.53 crore users.