New Delhi: UAE-based Etisalat has decided to shut down its India operations -- Etisalat DB that has over 16.7 lakh mobile subscribers -- following the Supreme Court order which cancelled 122 telecom licences in the 2G spectrum allocation scam.
Etisalat, which holds the majority stake Etisalat DB, is the second foreign telecom company to exit India after Baharain Telecom which offloaded its 42.7 percent stake in S Tel.
In an e-mailed statement Etisalat said, "As unanimously resolved by the Board this evening, Etisalat DB will be taking steps to reduce operating costs, including the suspension of its network and services, pursuant to the terms of its UAS licenses."
Etisalat's 16.7-lakh strong subscriber base is spread across 15 circles, including Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Mumbai and Punjab.
"The decision has been taken in order to protect the interests of all stakeholders and to avoid incurring further costs at this time of rapid change and continued uncertainty in the Indian telecommunications sector," Etisalat said.
Further information, including the official cessation date will be communicated shortly to customers through the appropriate channels, the statement added.
February 9, Emirates Telecommunications Corp (Etisalat) had written off about USD 820 million worth value of its Indian operations by way of an impairment charge as an after effect of Supreme Court order.
The apex court on February 2 ordered cancellation of 122 licences issued by the then telecom minister A Raja in 2008 on first-come-first-serve basis. It asked the government to issue fresh licenses through auction.
Trouble for Etisalat customers started on January 20, almost two week before the SC judgement, when its network was disconnected by Reliance Communications subsidiary Reliance Telecom Infrastructure for non-payment of dues and the company did not make efforts to restart its network.
PTI
First Published: Wednesday, February 22, 2012, 20:55