New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday said the government intends to address the concerns of the crisis-ridden telecom companies which are facing billions of dollars of fresh statutory liability following a recent Supreme Court ruling.
"I want no company to shut operations. I want everyone to be up and running. We want the economy to have good number of companies in business and flourish in their business.
"Not just the telecom sector, my wish is all companies in all sector(s) be able to do business, service their market customer and survive. So with that approach, the finance ministry has always been talking and in telecom too that's the approach we have taken," the minister said in reply to a query regarding stress in the telecom sector.
While announcing its financial results on Thursday, telecom major Vodafone Idea (VIL) had said its ability to continue as a going concern is dependent on obtaining relief from the government and positive outcome of the legal remedy post the apex court ruling on the Adjusted Gross Revenue (AGR) issue.
The Supreme Court last month ruled in favour of the government and directed telecom companies to pay as much as Rs 1.42 lakh crore in past statutory dues to the government.
Days after the Supreme Court verdict, the government had set up a Committee of Secretaries (CoS) under the Cabinet Secretary to suggest measures to mitigate financial stress in the sector.
Sitharaman said "it is the intention" to address concerns of all those who have approached the government with serious concerns post the court's decision.