The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved a relief package for the telecom sector that includes a four-year moratorium on payment of statutory dues by telecom firms, but it will have to be paid within the 10 years timeframe as decided earlier. It has also allowed 100 per cent Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) via the automatic route. Earlier, automatic investment routes were limited to 49 per cent level, and approval from concerned authorities was required for foreign investment beyond 49 per cent level.

Telecom Minister Ashwini Vaishnav said the definition of AGR, which had been a major reason for the stress in the sector, has been rationalised by excluding non-telecom revenue of firms. Penalty on payment of licence fees, spectrum user charges and all kinds of charges have been completely scrapped.