‘No auto equity swap of Airtel’s dues to govt’

NEW DELHI: Bharti Airtel‘s about Rs 41,000-crore of adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues will not be converted into equity automatically as the telco’s application for such conversion will go through a scrutiny at the Department of Telecom (DoT), an official source said on Friday.
Bharti Airtel has sought conversion of its AGR dues of around Rs 41,000 crore, including interest liability, into equity in line with the relief given to Vodafone Idea by govt. “The application does not mean that it will be processed automatically. It needs to be evaluated and scrutinised before any final decision is made,” the source said. An e-mail seeking comments from Bharti Airtel elicited no reply.