No plans to merge BSNL, MTNL: Govt

Telecom Minister Manoj Sinha on Thursday said there are no plans to merge BSNL and MTNL at present.

"There is no thinking in government on merging the two. But we are taking steps to ensure that collaboration between MTNL (Mahanagar Telephone Nigam) and BSNL (Bharat Sanchar Nigam) strengthens and benefits both the organisations," Sinha told reporters here.

Asked whether the telecom ministry will intervene in the ongoing face-off between established private operators under Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) and telecom regulator TRAI over the latter's policies and regulations, the Minister pointed out that the regulator is "independent".

"Trai is an independent regulator. Whatever the ministry has to do, it will do so with fairness and without bias," he said.

Earlier, mobile operators under the aegis of COAI have alleged that decisions by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) have put all but one operator at a huge disadvantage, and that its regulations had distorted the market.

The minister also unveiled the Department of Telecom's strategic plan for bringing together state-owned companies and organisations in the sector for promoting greater operational synergy among them, including effective utilisation of human resources as well as land and buildings.

"Under the plan, we have identified specific areas where our teams will work on including manpower, settlement of legal issues and utilisation of vacant space. I am pleased to see the focus on clearly-defined timelines and performance indicators," the minister said.

The strategic roadmap will also cover areas like standards and certification, and preparing to tap opportunities in areas like 5G and Internet of Things (IoT).