MAM
Bharti Cellular to expand operations in north India
MUMBAI: Bharti Cellular Limited, India’s leading cellular service provider, today announced major expansion plans for AirTel in Uttar Pradesh (west) and Uttaranchal with a planned additional investment of Rs 800 million in the financial year 2003. This will take the total investment made by AirTel, to Rs 2.3 billion within 22 months of operation in the region.
In a press release, AirTel also announced its plans to roll out services in 25 new towns of UP (west) and Uttaranchal in Firozabad, Hathrus, Gajraula, Philkua and Mawana by the end of November. AirTel also announced its plans of installing 104 new base stations thereby taking the total number of base stations in the region to 340.
The release claims that this will be the highest number of base stations by any service provider and reflects AirTel’s commitment of providing an unmatched mobile service experience on a congestion free network. AirTel also announced a slew of initiatives customised to the needs of its customers in UP (west) an Uttaranchal.
Announcing this, Bharti Cellular north central region CEO Sanjay Nandrajog says: “AirTel is a promise of the best network, customised service and a complete mobile service experience. Having firmly established our leadership position in Delhi and most of the other markets in the country, we are all set to replicate the experience in UP (west) and Uttaranchal. With a planned roll out of our services in 25 new towns and with significant investments on infrastructure, we are also well on course to ensure that the AirTel mobile service experience is available to a larger base of customers within a very short time.”
In phase II, services will be rolled out in Sambhal, Pilibhit, Badaun, Shamli, Deoband, Haldwani, Radrapur, Kathgodam, Kashipur, Bajpur, Kicha, Chandausi, Bilaspur, Kaladhunghi, Ramnagar and Fatehpur Sikri.
AirTel has also launched the North India Roaming Facility. The service comprises of the following features:
* North India Roaming service will be available to customers without any additional security deposit.
* The service will be available at a monthly rental of only Rs 30. However, the service will be free of rental till 30 October 2003.
* The mobile circles of Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan form a part of the North India roaming service.
* A customer while roaming in these circles will be able to make outgoing calls to all the five circles of North Roaming and his home circle. They can however, receive calls from anywhere in the world
AirTel has also announced special ISD rates to the Middle East till the end of the month for both postpaid as well as prepaid customers.
* ISD Calls to Middle East in September can be made at Rs 11.99 per minute instead of the usual rate of Rs 15.99 per minute for post-paid and Rs 16.99 per minute for pre-paid customers.
* These rates are 50 per cent cheaper than landline rates for ISD calls.
AirTel customers will now be able to make STD calls to Delhi at Re 1.00 per minute on a post-paid connection and Rs 1.99 per minute on pre-paid connection during weekends.
Bharti Tele-Ventures (BTVL) claims to have an aggregate of 4.9 million customers as of 31 August 2003, consisting of approximately 4.4 million mobile and 469,000 fixed line customers. We are the largest mobile service provider in the country. The all-India market share as on 31 August 2003 was 25.2 per cent.
For the quarter ended 30 June 2003, revenues and EBITDA as per un-audited IAS accounts were Rs 10.36 billion and Rs 2.89 billion respectively. As on 30 June 2003, the company has made a gross investment of over Rs106.50 billion (US$ 2.3 billion) in building telecom in India.
Brands
Wipro hires 7,500 freshers, withholds FY27 hiring outlook
Profit rises to Rs 3,522 crore, Rs 15,000 crore buyback announced.
MUMBAI- Hiring may be on, but visibility is off, Wipro is adding talent even as it pauses the crystal ball. The company hired 7,500 freshers in FY26 but stopped short of offering any hiring outlook for FY27, underscoring the uncertainty gripping the IT services sector as it pivots towards an AI-led operating model.
The disclosure came alongside its fourth-quarter earnings, where management flagged volatile demand conditions and refrained from committing to future workforce expansion. Chief human resources officer Saurabh Govil noted that over 3,000 of the total hires were onboarded in the March quarter alone, signalling continued intake despite a lack of clarity on deployment pipelines.
This divergence active hiring without forward guidance reflects a broader industry pattern where talent acquisition continues even as deal conversions remain uneven and client spending cycles stretch. Wipro expects its IT services revenue for the June quarter to range between a decline of 2 per cent and flat growth sequentially in constant currency terms, reinforcing near-term caution.
Chief executive officer Srini Pallia pointed to artificial intelligence as both a disruptor and an opportunity. He said evolving client priorities are pushing the company towards outcome-driven engagements, with Wipro increasingly focusing on a services-as-software model through its AI Native Business and Platforms unit. The shift marks a structural change from traditional headcount-led growth to AI-enabled delivery frameworks.
The company has already committed over $1 billion to its AI ecosystem, with investors closely watching how these investments translate into revenue. For now, the numbers present a mixed picture. Net profit rose sequentially to Rs 3,522 crore, while revenue grew 3 per cent to Rs 24,236 crore. However, core IT services performance remained under pressure, with full-year revenue declining 0.3 per cent in dollar terms and 1.6 per cent in constant currency.
Large deal bookings offered a counterpoint, rising 45.4 per cent year-on-year to $7.8 billion, highlighting a widening gap between deal wins and actual revenue realisation. On a quarterly basis, IT services revenue slipped 1.2 per cent sequentially, signalling continued softness in execution.
Margins, however, told a more optimistic story. Operating margins expanded to 17.3 per cent in the fourth quarter, up from 14.8 per cent in the previous quarter, reflecting improved cost discipline. That said, the company cautioned that upcoming wage hikes and the ramp-up of large deals could exert pressure going forward.
Attrition stood at 13.8 per cent in the March quarter, indicating stabilisation after periods of elevated churn. Alongside its earnings, Wipro also announced a Rs 15,000 crore share buyback, reinforcing its focus on shareholder returns, with a payout ratio of 88 per cent over the past three years.
Taken together, the numbers capture a company in transition investing in AI, maintaining hiring momentum, but navigating a demand environment where growth is uneven and visibility remains limited.
