BSNL Employees Urge PM Modi To Approve Rescue Package Without Delay

The employees of government-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam (BSNL) have urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to approve without delay a revival plan for the telecom entity. “The employees are very confident that BSNL can be revived in three to four years and made profitable,” K Sebastian, general secretary, Sanchar Nigam Executives Association, wrote in a letter to the PM. On September 26, a meeting convened by P K Mishra, principal secretary to the PM, on revival of BSNL, could not decide the question of whether it was possible.

BSNL has real estate assets at all prime locations, worth more than Rs 3 trillion. It has 661,000 tower assets and 90 per cent of the Bharatnet project work has been done by it. “During natural calamities and emergency situations like that in Jammu & Kashmir, BSNL performed in an outstanding way, without looking for profits,” urges Sebastian. About half the 176,000 employees at BSNL are estimated to retire in the next five to six years. If even half of those eligible (above 50 years) opt for a VRS, that would be 40,000 people.