Thank you very much. We have the first question from the line of Sanjesh Jain from ICICI Securities. Please go ahead.

First, on the 4G net add, it's been more than 4 months, 5 months. We have not seen material uptick in 4G. When should the benefit of this network expansion should start visible in terms of 4G addition accelerating? That's my first question.

Sanjesh, thanks for the question. 4G net adds that we had in the last quarter was a nominal increase. This quarter, we've added about 0.4 million 4G subscribers. Generally, the 4G subscriber trajectory would also change in line with our overall subscriber trajectory. Also, when I talk about 4G, it includes 5G also, and the proportion of 5G devices on our network is also growing constantly. As we roll out our 5G network across different circles, that would also enable us in getting more smartphones onto our network. These are the things which are trending in the right direction , especially the subscriber metrics where we have seen a significant reduction in the subscriber loss compared to last quarter and an improvement in the 4G subscriber additions. I would say that with the continuing investment and launch of 5G, we should see a further improvement going forward.

Very clear. So how has the experience of earlier 5G launches in a few locations where we have done? Have we seen the trend showing that at least early signs of that?

Yes, yes. In all the 4 cities , I mean, 2 circles and 2 cities , where we have launched 5G, the uptake has been very good. Traffic has quickly started moving to 5G, wherever people have 5G devices. One thing I have been very happy about is that Mumbai, Delhi and also Chandigarh and Patna post the launch, we've not had any complaints with reference to 5G, really speaking. Sometimes when you roll out a new technology for the first time, you'll find lot of complaints. In fact, there's been a lot of positive feedback, and we've not had anything in terms of complaints, which is technology related. Of course, complaints can come when a customer doesn't have a satisfactory experience. But I would say the launch of 5G and the uptake of 5G, wherever we have launched has been very good. While 5G is giving a good experience, it is also releasing capacity on the 4G networks wherever it is being implemented, and that is also improving the experience on the 4G itself. So, it's been good in all ways.

Any 5G subscriber number which you can share? I know it's very small right now, but any 4G penetration, 5G subscriber number we can share?

I can tell you that in in all these four cities, the number of 5G subscribers who are using 5G as a percentage of people who have 5G devices is north of 60%. This means most people who have 5G devices have started using, although our rollout has been just 1.5 months -- or 2.5 months for Mumbai and other cities has been all less than a month. So , the uptake, given the time period whic h has elapsed , has been very good. And along with the number of users, a large quantum of traffic on these sites has shifted to 5G.

That's very helpful. And 5G, how tariff is, right? It starts with 2 GB per day plan or we start with 1.5 GB?

We start at the INR299 plan -- and that is our introductory offer, as we had mentioned. Ultimately, we would also kind of look at addressing that. But since we have just launched 5G, it is the initial phase. So, we've kept it attractive at INR299.

Currently, we have got capex under implementation in the ballpark of about INR5,000 crores to INR6,000 crores. A large part of it would be implemented in the current quarter and some of it may spill over to the next quarter. In terms of our next round of capex, we have to kind of decide and firm up our plans. It also has some dependence on the funding. So, when we come to the next quarter, we will be able to provide some guidance there. But at least for this quarter and coming quarter, we are on track for kind of incurring a capex of roughly around INR6,000 crores.

That's very clear. And anything on the fund raise? Any time line we have thought, any instrument, which is in our mind, anything which has firmed up?

No, nothing is closed as yet. What I can tell you is that you would have seen that along with the quarterly results, we have also taken an enabling approval, which we do every year for fundraising. So , our primary source of fundraising remains bank borrowing, which we are working on. The conversion of the government dues to equity along with the upgrade in the credit rating, those are facilitating factors for us to take those discussions forward. Post the conv ersion, the engagement has started again seriously. Since we don't want that everything has to come through bank funding, we have also taken an enabling approval because for items other than bank funding and NCDs, you need an enabling approval of shareholders. We are exploring some other possibilities in terms of instruments but the main focus remains on securing the bank funding.

Our next question comes from the line of Vivekanand Subbaraman from Ambit Capital.

So my first question is on the engagement with the government. So you and one other player have been talking about changing the way customers are charged from current 1 GB quasi unlimited packages on a daily basis to usage-linked pricing. Now I just want to understand, is there any engagement that you are having with the government to help you arrive at this because we've been hearing about this from the industry for quite a long time and no progress has been made despite three tariff hikes happening over the last 6 years. So is there anything that you feel that the government needs to do for you to move to that path of linking the tariffs to usage? That is one. Second, on the government front itself, DIPAM now has 49% shareholding. Are they interested or is there any conversation for them to join your Board? That's on the government's front. And the next question is on the settlement asset. Now your notes to accounts, Note number five mentions that you have postponed the receipt of the settlement asset to Sept ember 2025. Now given that your capex depends on funding, I just want to understand why you chose to postpone it instead of get Vodafone PLC to clear this settlement amount on 30th June?

Thanks, Vivek. Let me answer your three questions. Your first question was on tariff and our commentary on the change in the tariff structure. This has nothing to do with the government. This is to be decided by industry as to how do they want to take it forward. You are right that while this discussion has been happening or this commentary has been happening for some time, we have not seen this converting to reality. I guess this requires a certain action. Somebody needs to take the lead and others need to also follow. But ultimately, it is not for any sin gle player to be able to make this change. It's an industry thing, which inherent in our commentary is that for the tariffs to increase . We believe that the entry - level tariffs are at a decent level. They do not have room to increase very much because we have a large population who are just using it to having some minimum connectivity. And as I keep on saying that we have moved from an era of zero ARPU to about INR 5,000 ARPU to now between - - for a single person if he wants to use for the full month, INR200 to, you can meet all your needs at about INR600. So that has contracted and which is fundamentally that the incremental usage comes at a very low price, which is not the case. So, industry will have to find a solution to this. I don't have any concrete points at this point of time. But we do believe that that's the only way the ARPUs can go up. You cannot increase the price uniformly across board now. It has to be incremental usage, incremental payment. Of course, it has to be telescopic by nature. Your p er unit of consumption will be cheaper if you are consuming more as happens in any kind of service or commodity that you may be selling. So that answers your first question. On the second point, you said that the government is 49% shareholder, which is rig ht. I don't think there is any intent to take up any board seat. Let me just describe it like this, that this is shareholding of the government not with an intent to have the shareholding, but this shareholding is a consequence of their trying to provide s upport in reducing our dues. Their intent is not to have this holding and the intent is not to have any board seat. Based on the best of my understanding and comment which has also been there from the government themselves is that they have no intent of taking any role in the management of the company. The third question is relating to settlement assets. We have clarified earlier also that the recovery of settlement assets is dependent on the payment by the company of the AGR dues. So really speaking, the earlier arrangement was that these had to be paid by June '25 for this to be effective. So, the settlement asset is not receivable unless we ourselves pay the AGR dues. Having said that, we are in discussion with Vodafone Group to see what is the best way to make this arrangement workable. While we are under discussion, we have extended the date from June to September so that there is no strict deadline and we can continue with our discussions.

Okay. I have a couple of follow -ups. Now you have accelerated the capex as far as population coverage and 5G expansion is concerned. So the 4G population coverage target that you had outlined, say, by March 2026, right, 1.2 billion, are you still on course for that? And I believe Sanjesh was asking you that question with respect to the tower count and network presence. Is that target still on track? Or is that getting postponed due to the fundraising, the current discussions ongoing on fundraising?

The capex, which is already under execution, we should be reaching a level of 84% of population coverage, 1.2 billion roughly translates to 90% of 4G population coverage. I believe we will move up to 84%, but to get to 90%, it has got linkage with bank funding. But Vivek, let me just tell you one thing that it is not only that we have increased the population coverage, we've also rolled out a lot of infill sites. So what we are rolling out is a mix of coverage expansion and infill sites to improve the experience of the customers. Now I would say that compared to where we were a year ago, today, we've come to a point that wherever we had congestion in our network, that has been completely addressed. So wherever our customers were, while we were providing a good experience earlier also, but what has changed is that there were pockets where there was congestion where we could not invest earlier, we've addressed all that. Population coverage has also grown significantly. And a large part of the areas which we wanted to cover are covered. And of course, 5G is also being rolled out. I would say that while getting from 84% to 90% is important, and we have to continue with our capex plans but we have come to a point where our overall offering , with the completion of this 5G in the remaining circles , is competitive in the market, and we can continue to invest more. But the challenges which we had earlier where we were not able to address some of the customer experience issues, they have been fully addressed. Now it's a question of getting to further population coverage, which, as I said, there's some linkage to funding, which we'll continue to work on.

I had two questions. Firstly, on the AGR issue. Now follo wing this dismissal of the latest review petition, our understanding, at least as per media reports is that the Supreme Court did observe that if you do seek any relief from the government, then they won't come in the way. Could you give some more clarity or thoughts on this? Is our understanding correct based on the press reports? And in your view, if the government does look to provide any further relief, do they -- can they just go ahead? Or do they need any specific clarity from the courts?

Saurabh, thanks for your question. Given the sensitivities around the court proceedings, I'm not allowed to comment on what was said. But what media has reported is a factual reporting of what happened in the court. There are, of course, transcripts and recordings available of the court proceeding. So I believe what media has reported is a correct reflection of what happened in the court. As far as the government relief is concerned, we are engaged with the government. Whether or what the government will do, I cannot comment on behalf of the government. But definitely, post the judgment, we continue with our engagement with the government to find a solution to the AGR matter.

Okay. So I mean, is it fair to say that in your view, the government can proceed now without it I mean, the general view was that beyond what is there in the relief package, if the government were to do something, then it could be against the previous court verdict. But does this now appear that it could pave the way for the government to go ahead? I mean, your view, I know what the government eventually does is in their hands. But is that your understanding?

Yes, our view is that the government can do. And in fact, just to put things in perspective, even when the reforms package was announced in 2021, there was some PIL, which was filed in the Supreme Court. And that time the Supreme Court in their final order, they had stated to the effect that this is a policy matter, which is within the purview of the government, and they would not interfere in it. In some ways, if you look at the reforms package of September 2021, government had taken the initiative. And I see no reason why the government should be constrained in any way to offer relief, which it decides to do.

Okay. That's very clear. And the second question was on the debt funding now despite the spectrum conversion to equity and also these credit rating upgrades, clearly, I guess, I know you started reengaging with banks, but the debt raising isn't going through. So is it fair to assume that it's again dependent on AGR. They're still seeking relief or clarity on AGR, even though the rating agencies seem to be okay giving you investment grade?

What the rating agency has done is somewhat different. One is that after the conversion, we have started reengaging with the banks. There are some activities which we have to finish, which are currently in progress. We will get to again a point of discussion with the banks somewhere in this month on some of the prerequisites in terms of those actions and activities are completed. Generally, our discussions, part discussions with the banks showed that they needed some more clarity on AGR. Conversion, of course, has been a big step forward. So, I would say that the banks would want some clarity on the AGR dues. While that is happening, it is not preventing the discussions to go forward. Discussions are still continuing.

Okay. And just my last question, just to clarify, the AGR outstanding right now is around -- is that INR703 billion because there were some different numbers which have been floating around, and I think you aren't mentioning this in your press release anymore.

So Saurabh, the figures, including accrued interest on 31st March is about INR760 billion.

7-6-0?

It's simply last year's figure, plus 8% interest. That's the only change.

The next question is from the line of Gaurav Malhotra from Axis.

Just a few questions. So Akshaya, you mentioned the 224,000 site number. So that was a number which was there, if I'm not incorrect in the QIP document, SPA document also, and you are at 184. So that 184 journey to 224 is premised on the bank debt funding as well. Is my understanding correct?

Our unique towers are already at 1,95,000. And of course, some of these are getting converted from not being broadband to broadband. So when we say a figure of about 220,000, that is a figure of the total number of sites. Of course, in the end result, everything will be a 4G site. So there will be no difference between the unique sites and the 4G broadband sites. Currently, there is some gap there. So ultimately, our target is to get t o about 220,000 sites. In terms of that being dependent on bank funding, as I said, with our current capex in progress, we should get to 84% population coverage. With some more capex during the year independent of funding, we could still get to around 85%, 86%. But to get to the entire target of 220,000, that would be requiring bank funding for sure. And just to be clear, 220,000 was an end target. It need not necessarily have been done in 2 years. It was a little dynamic. It could have been done in 2 years , 2.5 years also. So that was where we said that whatever we had planned for a 3-year capex, of course, coverage was a priority, but it could have happened anywhere between 2 to 3 years' time frame.

Understood. The next question is on your network opex. Obviously, your capex has moved up quite sharply. The sites have moved up, but your network opex has essentially remained flattish in the last 2, 3 quarters. So how should we sort of think about that?

Let me just give you an overall holistic view and then Murthy can add if required. While some costs are going up , we are very focused on managing our costs in a better manner. So what you are saying and ultimately, that is reflected that the costs are not going up as our costs are being maintained and they are not going up as much as they should by rolling out of new sites. So we have taken a number of actions. Some of these, I ca n qualitatively tell you is that negotiation of rentals has been done over the year where they were very high. Biggest saving is coming from energy cost optimization. A lot of initiatives have been taken that we can operate on a lesser energy cost. Of course, just to be clear, if you look at on a year -on-year basis, it is comparable. But on a quarter -on-quarter basis, Q4 is the best energy cost quarter. So quarter-on-quarter comparison. But year-on-year also, we've had significant savings in energy cost. Then there have been activities and initiatives like we have in -sourced fiber management and also managed services for some of the radio networks that we had. And I can tell you, particularly on fiber, it was a major, major activity whereby we in -sourced eve rything. We also had our concerns. But the end result has been good on both directions. Firstly, we have actually been able to reduce cost. But more importantly, the incidents that we used to have when the fiber was being managed through outsourcing was qu ite bad, and we've been able to reduce what we call as P1 incidents compared to when it was outsourced by 75%. A significant improvement has been done both on the cost front and also operationally, we are much better off with the in-sourcing. So that was one area. And the last area to be highlighted is that IT cost, we were continuing with many legacy contracts. We have revisited them. And in the last year, IT costs have also come down and probably the benefit of some of that IT cost contracts which have be en renegotiated in the second half of the year would also spill over and give a higher benefit in the coming year. In general, we have a strong focus on managing the cost. And while new rollouts are resulting in newer costs, we are trying to see how we can best manage the existing cost. Murthy, you want to add something?

Yes. So Gaurav, network costs, as you would know, do not include rentals because rentals are accounted for below the EBITDA. From that perspective, since most of the rollout has happened largely in the last quarter, 1.5 quarters, hence, next year would have some impact on the rollout on an annualized basis. But at the same time, as Akshaya said, our focus would be to reign in cost as much as possible.

Our next question is from the line of Rishab from HSBC.

Firstly, a clarification on the discussion on Vodafone Group recoverables. So on the settlement, is it dependent on the payment of entire AGR dues or part of AGR dues payment will also help us to the settlement with Vodafone Group?

That is a very limited part of the overall AGR dues, which we have to pay to be able to claim that amount, not the entire AGR dues.

And secondly, on the launch of Nonstop Hero plan, what is the key strategy here as it offers unlimited data? And how does it help to boost ARPU?

Let me put it a little holistically . Nonstop Hero is a part of our strategy. As you are aware that we had been losing a number of subscribers over a fairly long period of time because we had not made investments. As we have made investments, our offering has become very competitive. And as I said, we're also launching 5G now, where we will have a very, very competitive offering in the market. Now to leverage that , we have created a lot of capacity in the process. And the subscriber metrics is improving, but let's say, we need to have an improvement, which is faster than what we have seen until now. To do that, as anybody needs to do that if you have had a signific ant loss of subscribers over a longer period of time, we need to have attractive propositions for our customers so as to get them back be able to experience our network, which they've not experienced for a long period of time. And I'm sure that once they e xperience that with some incentives for getting them back to network, they will then continue to stay. So right now, now there are products which are meant for ARPU upgrade, and we have seen that both with Superhero and Nonstop Hero. Some nonstop Heroes ea rlier were at a price point of INR365. Very recently, we have in the stronger circles also launched a Nonstop Hero at INR398. In overall terms, we are currently focused on letting more and more subscribers experience our much improved and competitive network. And once we make some progress, ultimately, we would be having pricing, which is more in line with the market. But these are interventions and initiatives meant to get our subscriber base moving in the right direction.

The next question comes from the line of Prashant P. R. from Jana Small Finance.

So yes, my question is regarding the brand recognition that the company is going -- the advertisements that the company is doing. So I was just wondering whether there are any chances of we going back to the old ZooZoo ads or the PUB-G ads that we had. So because India, I believe, is a market where there is a lot of value which comes -- when it comes to nostalgia, right? So we have seen the releases of old movies, which were super hits -- which actually connects with the masses. So the current brand management of the company, the current advertisements that the company is coming up with. So I'm not sure whether it is connecting with the masses, right? So if we -- can we just go back to the previous heads, say, run those campaigns, ask people to come back to Vi, just touch the nostalgia of the people. So is there any thought that is going in that direction for the company to connect with the masses? So that's my question.

Prashant, this is a complicated subject. I'm not an expert on the matter, but what I'm told is that old movies and reconnecting with the old brand while you are trying -- where you have established a new brand are two different things. However, I'v e heard you, I'll pass on your suggestions to our brand experts and let them give a thought to this.

Ladies and gentlemen, due to time constraints, that will be the last question. I'll now hand the conference back over to Mr. Akshaya Moondra for closing comments.

Thank you, Dorwin. Friends as discussed during the call, our initial investments have led to improved coverage and enhanced customer experience, resulting in significant reduction in subscriber loss. 5G launch is underwa y in key geographies. With our intensifying investments, we are confident of improving subscriber metrics going forward. FY '26 is going to be an important year for VIL and the company has taken critical steps towards the transformation journey. During the past year, the company has raised equity of INR614 billion, including FPO of INR180 billion, preferential issue of INR40 billion to promoters, around INR25 billion to vendors, Nokia and Ericsson and finally, INR369 billion to the Government of India. The government has also shown their support to the industry by waiving the BG requirement for the past spectrum auctions. We are working towards tying up debt funding for the execution of our long -term network expansion plans. And as I mentioned that as we hav e made the investments, we are also taking various actions to make our offering and proposition more attractive to our customers and prospective customers. With this, I would like to thank you for joining this call. Have a good day.

Thank you. O n behalf of Vodafone Idea Limited, that concludes this conference. Thank you all for joining us. You may now disconnect your lines.