Major tower companies in India such as Indus Towers, Bharti Infratel, and American Tower are alleging that local taxes are impeding them from running a business, reported ET Telecom.
The tower firms, under the Tower and Infrastructure Providers Association (TAIPA), are seeking abolition of property and other taxes imposed in states that are not in sync with central government rules.
“Some of the municipalities and states consider telecom towers only as a source of revenue instead of critical infrastructure essential for the common public. They calculate property taxes based upon the rentals, not linked to the standard and well-established guidance/rateable value for the area,” TAIPA said in its submission to Telecom Regulatory Authority of India.
Under the Indian Telegraph Act, state and local officials have no authority to levy and collect these taxes on towers. Already, more than 250 tower sites have been sealed, removed or demolished by various municipal corporations, negatively impacting over three million telecom consumers.
Telecom companies including Indus Towers, Bharti Infratel, and American Tower own 90 percent of the telecom infrastructure in the country. To date, the government has not included them under Right of Way Rules – protecting the companies from high rates and removing impediments regarding permits – implemented by the Department of Telecom last year.
“Government should enable faster provision of cost effective common telecom infrastructure for the benefit of the public at large and not revenue generation from licenses…which has cascading effects and eventually leads to additional cost to the public at large,” TAIPA said, according to SmartInvestor.in.
June 15, 2017
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