Telecom Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia
| Photo Credit:
SHAILENDRA BHOJAK
Telecom Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia has said that consultations on adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues with regard to Vodafone-Idea was in progress, but it was the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the company who should be defining corporate strategy.
“I don’t think because you (the government) are an equity holder and a minority at one at that, you can advise them (the company). It is the CEO, who should be defining what the corporate strategy is. It is for that company to define,” Scindia told businessline in an interview.
The government would, of course, like to see the company prosper, service its customers well and grows. “But that responsibility must lie with the management, and not with the Department of Telecom,” the Minister added.
The government has a 49 per cent stake in Vodafone-Idea, and the company is still struggling to retain customers and in major losses. Recently, the Supreme Court allowed the government to reassess Vodafore–Idea’s AGR dues, which has come as a lifeline for the company under severe financial stress.
5G rollout
Meanwhile, the company on Friday said that it has commenced the next phase of its fifth-generation (5G) network rollout in additional cities, while bolstering 4G capacity. The company’s 5G services are already available in 29 cities.
In a letter to its subscribers, Abhijit Kishore, CEO of the company, said that it has strengthened its digital services ecosystem through strategic partnerships in travel, the Internet of Things (IoT), fintech, MSME enablement, and future-ready connectivity solutions.
Published on December 28, 2025
