Bharti Airtel, Vodafone seeks license extension

New Delhi: Telcos Bharti Airtel and Vodafone has sought a 45-day extension to migrate to new frequencies from the telecom department, as their permits expired three days ago.

The operators are unwilling to return the spectrum that they hold in Delhi. They cite connectivity disruptions to more than 20 mn customers for holding on to the spectrum.

"This problem is the making of DoT, for failure of giving clearances in time. Therefore, it is incumbent upon DoT to devise an appropriate methodology to solve this problem," said Rajan Mathews, director general of the Cellular Operators Association of India, the lobby for GSM telcos including Bharti Airtel, Vodafone India and Idea Cellular.