Final guidelines on telecom M&A likely by Sept-end

The long-awaited final M&A guidelines for the telecom sector is likely to be ready by this month-end. "I had a talk with the Secretary (Telecom) this morning and said it (M&A policy) should be out by September 15... He says he needs another 15 days," Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal told reporters after his meeting with industry players today.

When specifically asked will the M&A policy be ready by end of September, the Minister said: "We hope .... We always hope." Telecom operators have been waiting for long to see the final guidelines of merger and acquisition (M&A).

When contacted Telecom Secretary MF Farooqui told PTI: "We will sit once again and discuss with industry their view points before finalising the (M&A) guidelines... probably in a week (meeting with industry)."

The M&A guidelines that have been okayed in principle include expeditious approval to merger proposals of telecom companies if their combined market share is up to 35 percent.