Government wants to give more concessions to Vodafone Idea..

Vodafone is the British multinational telecom company. Vodafone Idea is it’s Indian branch. Still, the Indian government is going out of the way to help and save Vodafone Idea from it’s financial crisis. As per the order of the Supreme Court in 2019, Vodafone Idea had to pay Rs.58,254 crore as AGR (Adjusted Gross Revenue) dues to the government. This amount has accumulated to Rs.83,400 crore as on March, 2025 including interest, penalty and interest on penalty. In March, 2025 the government converted Rs.36,950 crore of the dues into equity (shares). Presently, the Government of India is the biggest shareholder in Vodafone Idea, having 49.99% of shares in that Company. However, the government is not having any representation in the Management of Vodafone Idea. The Company is unable to pay the remaining AGR dues to the government. At this juncture, media is reporting that the government is looking into various options to provide further relief to Vodafone Idea. One of the options is to increase the repayment period to 20 years from the present period of 6 years. The government is also thinking to charge simple interest on the outstanding amount, instead of compound interest. The 2^nd option is to charge a total amount of Rs.1,000 -1,500 crore annually towards part payment of the dues until a final decision is taken on the AGR issue.

[Source: Economic Times dt. 24^th June, 2025]