Supreme Court has given telecom companies 10 years to clear AGR (adjusted gross revenue) dues of around 1.43 lakh crore rupees to the Centre.
A bench of Justices Arun Mishra, S Abdul Nazeer and MR Shah agreed with the Centre’s plea that staggered payment option be given to bail out the companies. The court, however, made it clear that the companies have to pay the dues without further review as it granted the firms a 10-year window.
The apex court set a deadline of March 31, 2031 for the companies to pay the amount in annual instalments. It directed the companies to pay the first instalment of 10% of dues by March 31, 2021.
The current Covid-19 situation and its impact on the telcos, banks and government finances appeared to have also weighed on the court.
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