Airtel, Vodafone Idea mention AGR calculation error plea in SC, court says to hear in 2 weeks The latest in the AGR battle between the telecom department and the operators started when Airtel in January, sought for a modification, clarification or recall of “mistaken orders” that allowed the government to demand Rs 43,980 crore as AGR dues against the telco’s calculation of Rs 13,004 crore. Devina SenguptaETTelecomUpdated: February 24, 2021, 14:09 IST

 Mumbai: The Supreme Court will hear the case on calculation errors of adjusted gross revenue (AGR) by the telecom department in March. SC's verdict could be the closure of this chapter of the AGR case wherein telcos-Vodafone Idea, Bharti Airtel and Tata Teleservices (TTSL) have pointed out errors in calculations that have led to what they call as inflated demand of statutory dues by the department.

The Airtel stock was trading 0.9% higher at Rs570.50 on the BSE in afternoon trade, while shares in Vodafone Idea were up 4.4% at Rs11.49.

The case was mentioned in the apex court on Wednesday. The latest in the AGR battle between the telecom department and the operators started when Airtel in January, sought for a modification, clarification or recall of “mistaken orders” that allowed the government to demand Rs 43,980 crore as AGR dues against the telco’s calculation of Rs 13,004 crore. Airtel has so far paid over Rs 18,004 crore of its dues.

Then Vi followed suit and appealed to the top court to allow the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) to consider the telco’s submissions on the calculation errors and rectify them accordingly. Vi has to pay Rs 58,400 crore in AGR dues, of which it has paid Rs 7,854 crore. The telco had self-assessed its dues at Rs 21,533 crore, which the top court had earlier rejected.

TTSL which has sold off its consumer mobility business to Airtel, moved SC with similar grievance. It has AGR dues of Rs 16,798 crore and has paid Rs 4,197 crore and highlighted errors as well.

This is not the first time though that the telcos impacted hugely by AGR dues have highlighted their grievances to both SC and DoT. While its earlier appeals were thwarted by the court, their last batch of letters to DoT on this issue have not elicited any response.

Any reduction in AGR dues is crucial for Vi, given its weak cash flows, huge debt and need to invest in expanding its 4G network to stem rapid subscriber losses, analysts said. The company is looking to raise Rs 25,000 crore through debt and equity to tide over its financial crisis.