BSNL and MTNL's Financial Struggle Continues

Loss-making telecom PSUs Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd and MTNL have failed to clear salaries of their 1.98 lakh employees for July, a union leader said Thursday. While BSNL Chairman and Managing Director P K Purwar said that employees will get the July salary on August 5, the union leader said that no information has been shared by the management about the disbursal of the salary.

"Salary for the month of July has not come. There is also no information when will it be credited," All India Unions and Associations of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (AUAB) Convenor P Abhimanyu told media. When contacted, the BSNL CMD said that employees will get the salary on August 5. "Funds are being arranged through internal accruals," Purwar said. BSNL has 1.76 lakh employees across India while MTNL has around 22,000 employees.

This is for the second time the two companies have defaulted on payment of salaries this year and for the first time after the new government took charge. The two PSUs had delayed payment of salaries for February until mid-March due to a financial crisis. BSNL had then said that it used its internal accruals to clear the pending salaries.Total monthly salary expenses of BSNL are in the range of Rs 750-850 crore while that of MTNL are around Rs 160 crore.

No comments were received from BSNL Chairman and Managing Director P K Purwar.MTNL Human Resource and Enterprise Business Director Sunil Kumar said that the company is in the process collecting some dues after which the salary will be paid on a priority basis. Kumar has also been given additional charge of MTNL CMD.