Rajan Bharti Mittal, vice-chairman and managing director of Bharti Enterprises took over as president of Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) at the conclusion of its 82nd annual general meeting (AGM).
Billionaire Gautam Adani's group is said to be planning a surprise entry into the race to acquire telecom spectrum, which will pitch it directly against Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Jio and telecom czar Sunil Bharti Mittal's Airtel, sources said. Applications for participating in the July 26 auction of airwaves, including those capable of providing fifth-generation or 5G telecom services such as ultra-high-speed internet connectivity, closed on Friday with at least four applications. Jio, Airtel and Vodafone Idea -- the three private players in the telecom sector -- applied, three sources with knowledge of the matter said.
Telecom service operator Airtel on Thursday urged the government not to charge high fees for allotting 5G spectrum, saying a faster roll out of the next-generation telecommunication network can have more benefits than collecting revenue in upfront cost. Sunil Bharti Mittal, chairman of Bharti Enterprises which runs the country's second largest telco, said that there are a variety of applications across sectors ranging from healthcare to video interactions, which will make 5G a technology to be introduced as soon as possible. "5G is important and that's why we keep on requesting the government to make the 5G as an enabler for hundreds of things that we develop in the country, to keep the spectrum at affordable pricing, to not load the industry too much," Mittal said at the Times Network India Economic Conclave.
Bharti will invest an additional $500 million (over Rs 3,700 crore) into OneWeb, to become the largest shareholder in the satellite communications company that billionaire Sunil Mittal-run Bharti Group along with the UK government had rescued from bankruptcy last year. The investment is a result of exercise of a 'call option' by Bharti. On completion of the transaction and with Eutelsat's $550 million investment, Bharti will hold 38.6 per cent. The UK government, Eutelsat and SoftBank will each own 19.3 per cent, OneWeb said in a statement.
The telecom industry, he said, is vital to the nation and the digital agenda of the government.
Internet giant Google will invest USD 1 billion in telecom major Bharti Airtel, which includes equity investment as well as a corpus for potential commercial agreements, to be identified and agreed on mutually agreeable terms over the course of the next five years.
Home minister heads several groups of ministers, including the one to decide the revival package for Bharat Sanchar Nigam and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam. His ministry also takes decisive calls on national security in relation to telecom operations as well as equipment and technology used in the industry.
Further stimulus measures are expected in the upcoming Budget where the focus is likely to be on reforms, including some structural measures such as reducing red tape and boosting foreign direct investment. The meeting with industrialists is in the series of discussions that Modi has had during the last couple of weeks to seek suggestions to revive growth.
Within a year of Gopal Vittal becoming the joint MD and CEO of Bharti Airtel's India operations, the company has elevated him as the MD and CEO for Bharti Airtel's operations in India and South Asia.
Telecom operator Bharti Airtel on Friday said it has signed an agreement to buy Vodafone's 4.7 per cent stake in Indus Towers on the condition that the proceeds will be used for investment in Vodafone Idea and clearing its dues towards the mobile tower company. Debt-ridden Vodafone Idea (VIL) has been unable to pay dues to Indus Towers and both VIL and promoter Vodafone have proposed a payment plan to clear the outstanding amount by July 15. In the meantime, VIL has committed to pay certain minimum amount each month to Indus Towers.
Top business leaders to raise issues on investment, trade and the rupee
Bharti Cellular Limited CMD Sunil Bharti Mittal and Essar Group promoter Ravi Ruia on Friday got a breather from the Supreme Court which exempted them from personal appearance in the trial court in a case of alleged irregularities related to allocation of additional 2G spectrum in 2002.
Singapore based telecom firm SingTel, which holds over 30 per cent stake in Bharti Airtel, on Wednesday said it has full faith in the company's corporate governance standards under the leadership of company's chairman Sunil Bharti Mittal.
Bharti Airtel Chairman and Managing Director Sunil Bharti Mittal, Vodafone Plc CEO Vittorio Colao, Telenor CEO Jon Fredrik Baksaas and Idea Cellular Chairman Kumar Mangalam Birla on Wednesday met ministers and senior government officials to present the industry's concerns over telecom regulator Trai's proposals on the auction of spectrum.
The Supreme Court on Tuesday agreed to hear Bharti Cellular Limited CMD Sunil Bharti Mittal's plea challenging the March 19 order of the special court summoning him as an accused in a corruption case related to allocation of additional 2G spectrum during the 2002 NDA regime.
Mittal asked the Supreme Court to quash CBI court summons.
The Minister was talking to media on sidelines of a function organised by Department of Telecommunication for new version of Internet addresses, IPv6.
Most public sector banks, flush with deposits now, offer 3-4% interest on savings deposits, while a few private sector banks go up to 6%.
India's telecom subscriber base grew to over 1.17 billion in October with Bharti Airtel maintaining its leadership in mobile subscriber addition that accounts for over 98 per cent of total connections in the country, according to the monthly report released by sector regulator Trai on Wednesday. This is the second consecutive month when Airtel added highest number of subscribers. In September, it had regained the leadership position in subscriber addition after a gap of four years. The Sunil Bharti Mittal-led company added 3.67 million new customers in October, taking its total wireless customer base to 330.28 million in October 2020, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India's (Trai) report said.
Bharti Enterprises has had a joint venture with Walmart in the wholesale trade for years in India.
Without assigning any reason, Justice Dave, who was part of the bench headed by Chief Justice Altamas Kabir, opted out of hearing the pleas of Mittal and Ruia challenging the summons issued to them in the case.
On Thursday, the SC will resume hearing on Mittal's plea challenging the court's summons.
In a dig at Jio's Rs 1,500 4G-enabled feature phone, the Sunil Bharti Mittal-led company said its smartphone would be made available for the price of a feature phone
A Delhi court on Tuesday summoned as accused chairman-cum-managing director of Bharti Cellular Ltd Sunil Bharti Mittal, Essar Group promoter Ravi Ruia and five others in a case relating to alleged irregularities in allocation of additional spectrum to Airtel and Vodafone during the National Democratic All regime.
Asked for comments about Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma informing the Rajya Sabha in September that Wal-Mart had made the investment in Cedar via its Mauritius arm but the RBI had no FDI data of the same, Mittal said: "I have no idea. We have given everything what is required".
Industrial output growth rate remained flat in April.
Operators oppose levying of charges for additional spectrum with retrospective effect.
Telecom honchos Sunil Bharti Mittal, Anil Ambani, Kumar Mangalam Birla and Vittorio Colao are expected to meet IT and Communications Minister Kapil Sibal tomorrow to discuss various issues impacting the sector.
Several leading industrialists, including Reliance Industries CMD Mukesh Ambani, Vedanta Resources Limited executive chairman Anil Agarwal, chairman emeritus of Tata Sons Ratan Tata, Mahindra Group chairman Anand Mahindra, Paytm Founder and CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Welspun Group chairman and Assocham president B K Goenka, attended the swearing-in ceremony.
Has already invested $13 bn and needs another $9 bn to expand business, even as cash demands rise at home
Next week, the government is auctioning spectrum at a minimum bid price of Rs 14,000 crore for 5 MHz of airwaves for all the country's 22 telecom zones.
Billionaire Gautam Adani's Group on Wednesday announced the acquisition of SoftBank Group Corp's renewable power business in India for a deal value of $3.5 billion (approximately Rs 25,500 crore), to become the world's largest solar company. In a statement, Adani Green Energy Ltd, the renewable energy unit of the port-to-energy conglomerate, said it has inked share purchase agreements to buy 100 per cent of SB Energy India from SoftBank and Bharti Group. Without giving deal details, the statement said the transaction values SB Energy India at an enterprise valuation of approximately $3.5 billion, it stated. The transaction marks the largest acquisition in the renewable energy sector in India.
'YamaTough', the activist behind the 'Lords of Dharmaraja' hackers group, told Infosec Island, an information security Web site, 'Our goal is Bharti Mittal go off political arena and stop manipulating our government.'
Plans outlets smaller than in the US, with mostly Indian products, and a desi nameplate.
In a pre-Budget meeting with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, the corporate leaders highlighted several issues, including certain income tax matters which were coming in the way of mergers and acquisitions or slowing them down and roles that need to be played by state businesses to prosper at the ground level.
Two days after Bharti Airtel announced the launch of its fourth-generation (4G) wireless broadband services in Kolkata, it is tough to miss the mark of the campaign in the city's key locations.
Total revenue dropped by 10.5 per cent to Rs 19,634 crore in the fourth quarter of 2017-18
Mike Duke (left), senior vice president, Wal-Mart, and Sunil Bharti Mittal, president CII and chairman & group CEO, Bharti Enterprises, pose for a photo during the US-India Business Council luncheon in Washington, DC on Tuesday.
The Panama Paper leaks were originally revealed by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists on April 4, 2016, following which, the government had set up the MAG to probe the matter.
Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry president and Bharti Enterprises vice president Rajan Bharti Mittal chaired a symposium on corporate leadership on climate change in the presence of the Prince of Wales, who is here in connection with the Commonwealth Games.
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