Only three companies -- Essar for basic telephony in the Punjab circle, JT Mobile for Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka and Fascel for Gujarat, all cellular licences -- have not increased their financial bank guarantees. These companies had not paid their 20 per cent dues in February as a result of which the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) had encashed their financial bank guarantees. These companies now needed to up their bank guarantees to that extent as licence fees had been already adjusted when the earlier 20 per cent payments were due.

Essar, sources said, had defaulted on not only thebank guarantees but also the liquidated damages payment, of around Rs 8 crore. Whether DoT embarks on another round of terminations of licences will become clear only in the next few days. The fact is that the Government may take a tough stand on allowing these companies to get on to the revenue sharing arrangement.

With the payment of these outstandings, the companies have ensured that they have got themselves on to the revenue sharing regime, cleared by the Government in July. Of course, this would be subject to the Delhi High Court's order that the NTP be subject to ratification by the next Council of Ministers and the 13th Lok Sabha.