Tariffs absurdly low, hike must: Airtel MD

New Delhi, May 15

Tariffs in the Indian telecom industry are at an “absurdly low level” compared to other parts of the world, Bharti Airtel MD Gopal Vittal said on Wednesday as he strongly advocated “tariff repair” to lift return ratios.

Return ratios need to improve

Our pricing and tariffs are at an absurdly low level relative to any other part of the world. So, tariff repair is needed for return ratios to improve. —Gopal Vittal, Bharti Airtel MD

Quizzed about the company’s take on mobile tariffs and monetisation of 5G services, Vittal, during the Q4 earnings call of Airtel, said the industry requires substantial tariff repair and that ARPU (average revenue per user), when it climbs to the right levels at Rs 300 would still remain “one of the lowest in the world”.

“So, there is a substantial repair to be had in the industry…how that happens, I can’t guess, but we will see how it plays out,” Vittal said. He declined to comment on milestones for tariff hikes.