In an interview with Karan Thapar on the CNN-IBN channel's Devil's Advocate programme, Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia explains why he faults the controversial report of the Comptroller and Auditor General on 2G telecom spectrum allocation. Edited excerpts: The CAG report on 2G spectrum says the prospective loss incurred by the public exchequer could be perhaps as much as Rs 1.76 lakh crore Kapil Sibal (the telecom minister) says this is utterly erroneous and there was no loss at all. Whom do you agree with?
I think Rs 1.76 lakh crore (Rs 1.76 trillion) is a way out, unrealistic, number. Kapil himself has explained why it is not reasonable. It is based on 3G auctions which took place three years later, is not at all comparable and so on.
If so, was there a loss of a smaller dimension?
It's not very fruitful to go into the question: Could we have raised X amount of money? Because, the entire formulation of the telecom policy since 1999 has been that revenue maximisation is not the objective.
Kapil has explained that on certain calculations, if you make an assumption that maybe by a different kind of pricing or by a different kind of auctioning you might have made more money, you have to weigh that against the benefits you lose by lesser spread of telecom services at a competitive price.
