'Govt will not take sides...': How a September 2018 assurance from PM Modi helped Sunil Mittal survive a Jio storm

An assurance in 2018 from Prime Minister Narendra Modi helped Sunil Bharti Mittal traverse a tough course for Airtel, which was facing an "existential crisis at the time". 

In an interview with the Economic Times, Bharti Group founder Sunil Mittal recalled how Airtel struggled in 2018 against Reliance Jio's free services and unfavorable telecom regulations. 

He sought a meeting with the Prime Minister, expressing his concerns. The PM assured him the government would remain neutral. He told the telecom tycoon that his "government will not take sides". 

This, Mittal said in the interview, was the turning point (for Airtel). From a market cap of some $19 billion in 2019, Airtel has added more than $80 billion to its market cap in the last five years. 

The two telecom giants may face off again but in a different continent. Mukesh Ambani is reportedly working on a telecom venture in Africa, seeking to win mobile broadband customers in a high-growth market. Airtel is the second-largest operator in this part of the world with 4G services across the board. The Africa unit contributes a substantial 27 per cent to the telco’s consolidated revenues.

Reliance Industries through its subsidiary Radisys is set to offer advanced 5G shared network infrastructure in Africa in partnership with Next-Gen Infrastructure Co (NGIC), backed by the Ghanaian government. 

Teaming up with Tech Mahindra and Nokia, RIL plans to provide comprehensive network support across Ghana and eventually throughout Africa. While this venture doesn't directly compete with Airtel’s broadband services, it marks a strategic entry into the African market.