On his visits abroad, the first thing Prithipal Singh, 58, does after landing is find a Gurdwara. In fact, the amiable and avuncular Sikh has managed to find one in every country he has visited. And he has visited 40 of them. Asked about his elevation to the position of the Chairman & Managing Director of BSNL, he credits God for the good fortune. However, even if the elevation, on April 1 this year, came about by God's decree, there is no questioning his eligibility. Excerpts from an interview.

Q. You are getting into areas where private players are already well-entrenched, especially in GSM mobile services. How will you take on the competition?

A. Our planning has been elaborate. We will provide 100 per cent coverage, including all highways and railways. We will have high capacity. We already have connectivity. So, we can provide roaming immediately. People are not very satisfied with private operators. They have been waiting for BSNL mobile. Our services, including billing, will be fully transparent. And even the top man in every operation will be accessible.

Will you use tariff as a key weapon?

Pricing is very important. We have to be within the TRAI framework. We also have to make out a strong business case. But within these restrictions, we will provide the most competitive tariffs.

You are setting up a CDMA and a GSM network both of which enable similar mobile services. Isn't this wasteful?

WiLL (Wireless in Local Loop on CDMA) and GSM are two different services. We will use WiLL to cover rural areas.

Customer service is a major issue with BSNL. How will you address that?

We are changing the procedures in operator-controlled services. Operator interaction has to be minimised. We will move increasingly to IVR (interactive voice response).

Where do you see BSNL in year 2005?

It will have at least 50 per cent of all mobile subscribers. It already has 95 per cent of fixed-line subscribers. That share will remain intact.

There is a perception that BSNL is going nowhere because although it has been corporatised, its executives are mostly from ITS and they see themselves moving on from BSNL to DOT, like the former CMD D.P.S. Sheth did.

When the corporation was formed it was decided that all group A officers on deputation with BSNL will remain with it for five years. Group B and C employees have been absorbed, but the issue of group A officers is still open.

Weren't you ever tempted to leave the government and join the private sector?

The offers were always there, but never the temptation.

Why not?

I enjoy the freedom and flexibility of working with the government.

Isn't that contrary to popular perception?

In the government, there are 99 ways of not working and one of working. So no one will question you if you don't work. But there is that one of way working for those who want to work.

What has been your biggest achievement?

That I have reached this position by God's grace.

THE OTHER PLAYERS
Just who will BSNL run into as it tries to dominate the Indian telecom landscape.

Reliance's Vice-Chairman & MD, Mukesh Ambani

RELIANCE: Integrated telecom player. Betting on CDMA to take on the GSM juggernaut.
RESOURCES: Reported to be worth $4 billion (Rs 19,600 crore). Sold 4 per cent equity to Qualcomm for Rs 1,000 crore.
REMARKS: It can pull it off. But will someone please end the suspense?

Bharti's CEO, Sunil Mittal

BHARTI: Integrated player with dominant cellular play. Forced DLD rate cuts on BSNL.
RESOURCES: Raised Rs 2,850 crore in the past two years purely from IPO and foreign partners. Savvy management. Trusting partners.
REMARKS: Footprint covers 93 per cent of the cellular market. Efficient.

Tata Group's CEO, Ratan Tata

TATA GROUP: Idea Cellular, Tata Teleservices, and VSNL are formidable rivals.
RESOURCES: Has a war chest of Rs 10,000-14,000 crore.
REMARKS: Boasts an integrated telecom strategy, and it has hedged itself against risks of the Idea-BPL merger falling through.

Idea's CEO, Sanjeev Aga

IDEA: The Birla-Tata-AT&T combine has a large cellular footprint that will increase if the merger with BPL goes through.
RESOURCES: Said to be significant, but the Tata Group's independent strategy is a cause for worry.
REMARKS: A lot hinges on the merger. A lot.

Hutchison's CEO, Asim Ghosh

HUTCH: It is replicating in India what has proved a success the world over: pure cellular play.
RESOURCES: Its global parent made HK$140 billion (Rs 87,971 crore) from sale of Orange and VoiceStream; the parent's telecom turnover in 2001 rose 14% to HK $11,468 million. (Rs 7,206 crore).
REMARKS: Aggressive and agile.

THE SERVICE ASPECT

NOW
In 1997, announcing the launch of Bharti Enterprise's fixed line service in Madhya Pradesh, CEO Sunil Mittal described how his service would be different from that of the government monopoly: "Their men come to you every Diwali asking money for sweets. We, instead, will send you a box of sweets."

Rewiring a monopoly: Attitudes are changing

Things have changed little over the years and in every area of the sector that has opened up, private operators have used the customer service stick to beat the incumbent. And they are hoping the weapon will continue to work when BSNL's ambitious cellular network goes upstream.

THE FUTURE
BSNL, no more a government department but a corporate entity with a swank new office at New Delhi's Statesman House, has no plans to let things continue as they are. It is investing in call centres and network management & surveillance systems across the country. Acquiring a connection will no longer be the tortuous process it used to be. BSNL is also improving its network through large-scale repairs, and use of internal distribution points, remote line units, remote subscriber units, digital loop carrier and Wireless-in-Local-Loop. The total cost? Rs 2,000 crore. Less faults, less repairs, happier customers.

JUST HOW MUCH IS BSNL WORTH?
A lot, actually, but the buzz is, someone would like it cheaper

There's no shortage of conspiracy theories in Delhi, India's seat of power. The one relevant to BSNL hints darkly at how its fate has been guided not by the whims of the Ministry of Communications, but by a certain corporate. Look at how it was corporatised, subscribers to this theory point out. "Six months ahead of schedule, and the then minister didn't think twice about handing out carrots like free connections to appease the unions."

At the time of corporatisation, in October 2000, BSNL was valued at Rs 64,000 crore by N.M. Rothschild, a fair valuation for a company with 34 million subscribers. The Rothschild valuation puts the worth of every BSNL customer at Rs 18,285 ($373) at today's exchange rates. The finance head of a telco says the valuation could go as high as $600-700 a head (Rs 29,400-34,300) despite the fact that none of BSNL's subscribers are in Delhi or Mumbai (in these cities, the going value is around $1,200 a subscriber or Rs 58,800). Then, there are BSNL's 20 cellular licences, its fixed asset base of Rs 90,000 crore and net worth of Rs 46,000 crore.

If BSNL's cellular foray gets off the ground, this valuation could zoom. That's why, reckon the same conspiracy theorists, the said corporate is keen on scuttling each of the erstwhile monolith's new initiatives. Any takers?

1 2 3