Bharti refunds Rs 32.73 cr to subscribers

Complying with a directive from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, Bharti Televentures, which operates AirTel mobile services, has refunded Rs 32.73 crore (Rs 327.3 million) it levied from subscribers for migrating to revised tariff plans.

The operator had collected a one-time fee ranging from Rs 50-Rs 200 totalling Rs 35.49 crore (Rs 354.9 million) from existing subscribers for switching to revised plans with lower charges, a TRAI statement said.

Charging such a fee is violative of the provisions of Telecommunication Tariff Order, 1999. Accordingly, TRAI issued a direction, asking Airtel to refund the migration fee charged from the subscribers.

The statement said the difference between total refund due and total refund made was Rs 2.76 crore (Rs 27.6 million), which would be put in separate dedicated accounts.

The authority also directed Airtel to give wide publicity in the media/newspapers so as to enable the customers to avail the benefit of the refund ordered by TRAI.

The fee charged consequent to the revision of pre-paid and post-paid tariffs by Bharti Tele-ventures Ltd. (Airtel) in August 2004 in its 16 licensed areas of Delhi, Mumbai, Punjab, HP, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh (West), MP, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Kolkata, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, AP, Karnataka and Rajasthan.