Aniket PujariShares of Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd. (MTNL), a state-owned telecom firm, surged 18% in early morning trade on March 13, hitting a three-week high of ₹51.20 apiece after reports indicated that the company earned ₹2,134.61 crore from the monetization of lands and buildings.
According to data shared by Minister of State for Communications Pemmasani Chandra Sekhar in the Lok Sabha, BSNL has earned ₹2,387.82 crore and MTNL ₹2,134.61 crore from the monetization of lands and buildings up to January 2025, news agency PTI reported.
“BSNL and MTNL are monetizing only those land and building assets that are not required for their own use in the foreseeable future and for which they have the rights to transfer ownership,” Sekhar said in a written reply.
BSNL has earned ₹8,204.18 crore and MTNL ₹258.25 crore from the monetization of close assets comprising towers and fiber up to January 2025, as per the reply.
“The monetization of assets is being carried out as per the approved policy of the government, and its impact on PSUs is being monitored closely,” Sekhar added. Additionally, he clarified that India is not privatizing telecom firms Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd. (BSNL) and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd. (MTNL).
Meanwhile, private access service providers held 91.92 per cent market share of the wireless subscribers in India, as of December 2024, whereas BSNL and MTNL had a market share of only 8.08 per cent.
Stock price history
The company’s shares have corrected 40% over the last eight months, following a period between July 2023 and July 2024 during which it witnessed a one-way spike of 315%. MTNL provides telecom services in the geographical areas of Mumbai and Delhi.
Looking at the shareholding data, the Government of India owns a 56.3% stake in the company as of Q3FY25, while LIC is the second-largest shareholder, holding 13.44%. The remaining 30.2% is owned by the general public, according to Trendlyne data.
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