NEW DELHI, India—Bharti Enterprises, India’s leading cellular service provider, said it will invest 5 billion rupees (US$104.6 million) to build a new cellular network in the Punjab circle in north India. The license was restored to Bharti this week after a protracted battle with the Department of Telecom (DoT) since Bharti bought the license from JT Mobile three years ago.
The company announced it would launch full-fledged services across all major towns in Punjab by March 2002. It would introduce its AirTel and Magic (prepaid) brands, along with special roaming service within the northern region covering Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh (West) and Himachal Pradesh.
“A dramatic downward revision in the cellular tariffs would be undertaken since the Punjab market until now had been in a monopoly environment, as a result of which the tariffs have been unreasonable and have impeded the growth and expansion of the market,” remarked Sunil Bharti Mittal, chairman and group managing director of Bharti Enterprises.
After the fourth cellular license bidding process and its recent acquisitions, Bharti has emerged as India’s largest mobile services company with a footprint spanning 11 states and four metros.
