With its employee unions threatening a day-long hunger strike on Friday over delayed salaries during the festival season, state-run Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) has said that it is hopeful of paying salaries to its 1.76 lakh employees for September before Diwali.
"We will give salaries to the employees before Diwali from our own resources on accruals. We generate Rs 1,600 crore a month revenues from services," BSNL chairman and MD P.K. Purwar told IANS.
BSNL's per month salary pay-out is Rs 850 crore. Though it generates about Rs 1,600 crore per month in revenues, the amount is not enough to cover the wages as a major portion of the proceeds is required for operational expenses and statutory payments, sources said, adding that the PSU has been trying to raise funds from bank through government guarantees, which it is yet to get. The PSU also has to clear vendors dues from the internal accruals.
The telco posted a net loss of 13,804 crore in FY19. The induction of 4G spectrum and a voluntary retirement scheme to cut its huge work force, can lessen its financial woes but these may take time even though they are on the government's priority list, said Purwar.
The Finance Ministry and the PMO are in favour of Rs 50,000 crore capital infusion for revival of the BSNL and MTNL, the state-run telcos.
However, as per a Financial Express report on September 30, Ministry of Finance is was reportedly not convinced with the revival plan submitted by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) and has turned it down its massive Rs 74,000-crore bailout package.
Employees had not received their August salaries too, making it the third time the state-run telecom company delayed salaries of employees.
At the time, employees had threatened to go on strike.
“It is the firm view of BSNLEU (BSNL Employees Union) that, the non-disbursement of salary on time, is a clear cut attempt by the DoT and the BSNL Management, to create panic and frustration in the minds of the BSNL employees, with the view to compel them to go on VRS, which is being contemplated to be introduced shortly by the government and the BSNL Management,” Abhimanyu, general secretary of the BSNL Employee Union has said in a media statement at the time.