BSNL’s board has given in-principle approval to the Sam Pitroda Committee recommendations that called for a 30 per cent stake sale in the PSU and a one-third reduction in staff.

BSNL’s board has given in-principle approval to the Sam Pitroda Committee recommendations that called for a 30 per cent stake sale in the PSU and a one-third reduction in staff. However, the company has left it to the government to take the final decision on the quantum of stake to be divested. This is the third instance of the BSNL board clearing the stake sale. Since 2007, BSNL has twice approved the proposal to divest 10 per cent stake in the company but the operator has not been able to go ahead with the proposal due to employee resistance. Now too, the board’s decision has been strongly opposed by BSNL’s employee unions, which maintain that getting the company listed is a violation of the government’s earlier commitment of not divesting any stake.

The unions are also opposing the committee’s recommendation to reduce the staff strength and to cancel the company’s 93 million line GSM tender.