State-owned telecom giant Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) is planning for a workforce reduction. It is planning to trim its staff by 35 per cent. To facilitate this, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) is seeking approval from the Finance Ministry for a second Voluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS). BSNL has requested Rs 15,000 crore from the ministry to help cover the expenses of rolling out the VRS, as per a report by The Economic Times. 

An official in the know revealed to the publication, “BSNL’s board has sent a proposal to DoT to reduce the telco’s employee base by 18,000-to-19,000 via a VRS to make its balance sheet healthy.” BSNL currently spends around Rs 7,500 which is nearly 38  per cent of its total revenue, on employee salaries. The company plans to reduce this expense to Rs 5,000 crore annually to improve efficiency and streamline its operations.

The communications ministry plans to seek Cabinet approval once it secures clearance from the finance ministry. On Monday, BSNL’s board approved the Voluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS) to reduce its wage costs, especially since the company has yet to roll out 4G services nationwide. However, a senior official mentioned that the VRS plan is still under discussion, and no final decision has been made yet, according to the report.

BSNL reported a revenue of Rs 21,302 crore in the 2023-24 fiscal year (FY24). This reflected a modest improvement compared to the previous year. Back in 2019, a revival package worth Rs 69,000 crore was approved to support BSNL and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL).