New Delhi: Indian telecom companies are expected to increase the tariff rates in the coming months. According to the Investment Information and Credit Rating Society (ICRA) report, the companies can increase their tariffs to increase their revenue for the financial year 2021-22 starting from April 1.
According to the Investment Information and Credit Rating Society (ICRA) increase in the tariff and up-gradation of customers from 2G to 4G will help in improving Average Revenue Per User (ARPU). This will increase the industry's revenue from 11 per cent to 13 per cent, and will also increase the operating margins by 38 per cent in the coming two years.
The telecom industry did not see any negative impact during the pandemic as most of the people switched to work from home (WFH) and many relied on the mobile data connections. The online payments too were increased in the pandemic period, all of which has actually helped the industry.
The total outstanding Adjusted Gross Revenue (AGR) on the telecom companies is Rs. 1.69 lakh crore. There are only 15 telecom companies which have paid a total of Rs. 30,254 crore. The telecom companies are supposed to pay 10 per cent in the current financial year and the remaining amount is to be paid in the following years. Vodafone-Idea (Vi) owes Rs. 50,399 crore, Airtel owes Rs. 25,976 crore Tata teleservices owe Rs. 16,798 crore.
This is not the first time that Indian telecom companies have increased their tariffs. The companies had increased the tariff rates in December 2019.
The customers are more dependent on phone calls and mobile data in today's world and it will surely impact the lives of people. This comes when the fuel prices, LPG cylinder prices have been increasing continuously.
