BSNL to lay off 19,000 workers: Congress slams Modi’s ‘privatisation conspiracy’

Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), the state-run telecom giant, is set to slash its workforce by 35 per cent, with plans to lay off 18,000–19,000 employees through a second Voluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS).

According to a report by the Economic Times, the department of telecommunications (DoT) has sought Rs 15,000 crore from the finance ministry to fund the scheme, aimed at trimming BSNL's bloated wage bill.

BSNL currently spends Rs 7,500 crore annually — nearly 38 per cent of its total revenue — on employee salaries.

The proposed layoffs aim to cut this expenditure to Rs 5,000 crore to ‘streamline operations and improve efficiency’. A senior official privy to the plans was quoted as saying by the media: “BSNL’s board has sent a proposal to the DoT to reduce the employee base via VRS and make the telco’s balance sheet healthier.”

Reacting to this development, the Congress party has accused the Modi government of orchestrating a ‘deliberate conspiracy’ to dismantle public sector enterprises for the benefit of private players.

‘This is nothing but a ploy to destroy government companies and hand them over to Modi’s corporate friends,’ the party charged in its statement.

Highlighting the country’s unemployment crisis, Congress added: 'At a time when India's youth are battling ‘bumper’ unemployment, Modi’s government is throwing thousands out of work while making his friends richer.

‘From wandering city to city for jobs to being lathi-charged on the streets, the youth are paying the price for this regime’s priorities.

‘Modi has decided: I will make India’s youth beg for jobs, but I will make my friends billionaires.’

Adding to the controversy, some have claimed that the Modi government recently paid Rs 132 crore to Boston Consulting Group (BCG) for drafting a ‘revival strategy’ for the BSNL.

Meanwhile, employees have dismissed the move as ‘futile’, questioning its effectiveness given the company’s inability to roll out 4G services nationwide.

While BSNL’s board has approved the VRS proposal, officials say discussions are ongoing and no final decision has been made.

Critics argue that this move reflects the Modi government’s larger agenda of privatising key public assets under the guise of financial efficiency. The battle over BSNL’s future underscores a growing political debate: Will public sector enterprises survive or will they be sacrificed to the altar of privatisation?