Telecom Minister A Raja says the stake dilution by new operators has been cleared by Finance Ministry and Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA). He explained that the FDI policy does not come under the Department of Telecom's preview, and hence the ministry cannot prevent share dilution.
A Raja is in the eye of the storm over corruption charges relating to the Department of Telecom’s (DoT) awarding of 2G telecom licences and spectrum. However, Raja says he is unjustly targeted for breaking up cartels in the sector. “The entire industry is a divider. Everybody is having their own commercial and vested interest. They wanted to maintain their monopoly. I wanted to break the cartel. When I broke the cartel, all these things came into existence.”
Raja says he is responsible for doubling telecom growth in India.
Post the 3G auction, he plans to focus on new technology for rural telephony.
Raja foresees local calls at 10 paise per minute, STD at 25 paise per minute.
