Vodafone-Idea Requests Government To Approve Pending Spectrum Allocation

Almost all telecom operators are offering special benefits to their customers at this time. In fact, the Department of Telecom (DOT) has subsided the AGR issue at this moment. This also means that this is a temporary relief for both Airtel and Vodafone-Idea.

Now, India's second-largest telecom operator Vodafone-Idea has asked DOT to grant the pending spectrum allocation and regularize its spectrum." We have also requested DOT to clear our pending applications for spectrum allocation. We are hopeful that DoT would expedite our spectrum liberalization requests and regularize our backhaul spectrum," Vodafone-Idea said in a statement.

It said that the company is monitoring the situation and demand for calls and data during this lockdown period. "Our 12000+ ma-MIMOs (by far the largest deployment in the country) across key markets are substantially helping in managing the traffic spike. We are deploying capacities across using all means including the addition of COW sites wherever appropriate," Vodafone -Idea further said. Furthermore, the telco said that the ministry is also taking many steps so that we can offer smooth operations.

Meanwhile, Vodafone-Idea, Airtel, and Reliance Jio have set up war rooms so that they can monitor the situation easily. The operators have also received approval from the DOT to store the fuel and food for their technical staff.

"We have set up virtual war rooms where key team members are participating through Con calls and VCs. Senior team members from operations/circles / SNOC and partners are continuously on a call with the field to ensure uptime and operational continuity," Vodafone -Idea added.

Apart from that, Vodafone-Idea has announced that it is offering double data benefits with its prepaid plans. The operator is now providing 3GB data with its plans. Earlier, those plans used to offer only 1.5GB data. The plans also offer unlimited calling and free access to OTT platforms.