TRAI has asked all the telecom operators to provide web-based systems to attend and settle complaints of the customers. The acute delay at present due to various stages of dealing with the complaints have made the regulator to issue the present directives. This will be a move to improve the customer services.

The government is in a desperate move to sell shares of the profitable PSUs. But the market is not ready for the same. Further, even if it is sold, the amount will be less. But the Government is still considering seriously whether the shares of SAIL, NMDC, ONGC, NTPC, Coal India, OIC, MMTC, Neyveli Lignite, NHPC, BHEL and GAIL  are to be sold. The corporates and big business will be only too happy to invest less for more shares.

Can we allow the government to sell the family silver and destroy the PSUs? Certainly NOT!

There is no limit to the salaries of corporates and politicians through out the world. For example even after  a 36% cut in the salary, the Singapore Prime Minister will be one of the best paid official in the world. Even after the cut, his salary will be $ 1.69 million! It is more than 4 times that of US President Barrack Obama, who gets a huge $ 400,000 a year.

How the pay cut has come all of a sudden? There was so much noise  and resentment against the high salary of the ministers, including the Prime Minister and it was assured during the last election that the salaries will be cut. Hence the present decision.

What about the corporates all over the world? It is the same thing. We know how much the Ambanis, Tatas and others get. But in their own companies, what they are paying to the lowest category of workmen? Very low. This long divide in all spheres have to be narrowed down. Then only the toiling masses will get some relief. This discrimination in the income should go.

Amid inter-ministerial differences, the Union Cabinet on Wednesday deferred a decision on proposal of Disinvestment Department to raise Rs. 40,000 crore from divestment of PSUs through buyback and other modes. “The buyback proposal came up for discussion but decision on the proposal has been deferred,” sources said. The Department of Disinvestment (DoD), which has identified about two-dozen cash rich public sector enterprises with a total balance of nearly Rs. 2 lakh crore, had sought opinion of respective ministries on disinvestment through the buyback mode. Sources said several ministries, like petroleum and coal, were not in favour of the buyback proposal as the move would have impacted the cash balance of PSUs under them. The companies which have been identified by the government for stake sale include SAIL, NMDC, ONGC, NTPC, Coal India, Oil India, MMTC, Neyveli Lignite, NHPC, BHEL and GAIL. As the market conditions are not conducive for disinvestment through public offer route, the DoD has been planning to raise funds through other methods like, buyback and cross holding among PSUs. Under the buyback mode, the government can raise money by selling its equity in the company to the PSU itself. In order to facilitate the disinvestment process, the SEBI Board yesterday, relaxed the norms for buyback of shares and dilution of equity by companies. It would help the companies to complete the process of selling shares within days, as against the normal process which can take months. Among other things, the disinvestment department has also suggested promoting cross-holding of equities between CPSEs, which would help the government raise money without diluting its holding in such PSUs. Courtsey: Ganashakti)

Air India is reported to have prepared plans for cutting the salaries of about 5000 of its top paid employees to pass over the present financial crisis. The management is putting the argument that the company did not follow any set of procedure for pay revision and allowances and hence the pay cut.

The employees are being victimized for the inefficiency of the management and the anti-PSU policy of the government.

The DOT is proposing to impose Rs. 1,594 crore penalty on 6 private telecom companies for understating their revenues and cheating the government crore of rupees by paying less revenue share. The companies and the penalty proposed are as follows:

1. Bharti Airtel      : Rs. 292 crore            3. Vodafone          : Rs. 254 crore               5. Tata Teleservices        : Rs. 73 crore

2. Reliance            : Rs.  551 crore            4.  Idea Cellular   : Rs. 113 crore                6. Tata Communications: Rs.120 crore

It is always known that the private telecom companies have been violating rules and regulations and tutilising all opportunities to increase their profit. The government was also succumbing to their pressure and granting a lot of concessions, though fully unjustified. The present of the proposal of the government has been overdue since it was well-known that the companies were cheating all these years and the government was looking the other way.

The petition by the private companies Bharti Airtel, Vodafone and Idea against the orders of the DOT  for termination of their 3G services in the circles where they have got no licence is going to be heard by TDSAT on 9th January. Fortunately, the DOT has taken a tough stand and has submitted to the Telecom Dispute Settlement & Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) that it has no power to hear the case citing Supreme Court judgment that the tribunal could not entertain petitions on altering the terms of the licence. I am in full support of the same, since it seems to be the correct position. We have to build up pressure on the government to continue the present stand, since a lot of pressure may come from the big business and  MNCs as we have seen earlier.