The government on Thursday said it has decided to put the proposal for merger of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam [Get Quote] Limited on hold for some time, following a few complexities involved in the issue.

In a written reply to the Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for IT and Communications Shakeel Ahmad said a consortium of consultants led by ICICI [Get Quote] Securities has suggested some options for restructuring of MTNL and BSNL.

"Since the enabling conditions for the suggested options are not appropriate enough to lead to a successful merger and considering the complexity of issues involved, the restructuring of BSNL and MTNL has been put on hold for the time being," he added.

The government has been considering the restructuring of the two telcos for enabling them to achieve higher synergies in their operations. It had appointed a consortium of consultants to seek suggestions.

Meanwhile, Ahmad said over 94 lakh telephone connections were deactivated during verification drive of all the users by telecom service service providers.

About 19.48 lakh connections were cut in Maharashtra and Goa, while 11.43 lakh were deactivated in Delhi.

The companies, which have deactivated the mobile numbers of those users who have not been found genuine, include Bharti Airtel [Get Quote], Reliance Communications [Get Quote], Tata Teleservices [Get Quote], Idea, Hutchison Essar, Shyam Telelink and Aircel among others, the minister said.

In reply to another question, he said there is a proposal to amend the Indian post Office Act, 1898, which includes appointing of Mail Regulatory and Development Authority to regulate the sector.

The proposal has, however, not been finalised, he added.