MTNL chairman S Rajagopalan told The Financial Express that the decks for the service had been cleared with the Delhi high court's historic judgment quashing the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India's (Trai) ruling.

Rajagopalan was ecstatic over the judgment. "I am happy that my stand and the government's stand have been vindicated by the court," he said. "Trai has no jurisdiction whatsoever and this landmark judgment has clarified the position regarding their role," he added.

Meanwhile, MTNL has kickstarted the two-stage tender process for its proposed cellular venture. The first stage tenders were opened on Wednesday, with seven major companies joining the fray.

The bidders' list reads like a who's who of the global telecom fraternity. The lucrative Delhi and Mumbai markets have attracted companies like Motorola, Nokia, Ericsson, Seimens, Alcatel,Nortel and Lucent.

It may be recalled that the Delhi high court had given permission to start the bidding process. Rajagopalan said, "The court had permitted me to start work on my responsibility."

Expressing confidence over the potential of the cellular service, he lamented the fact that crucial three years had been lost due to the wranglings.

He expects no more delays now. "The two-stage tender process is a unique one and will be completed in three months' time," Rajagopalan said. The projects are to be executed on turnkey basis with the bidders being given the whole task of survey, design and installation. "The work will be completed under tight schedules and we hope to offer the service as promised," he added.

In addition, MTNL is also planning to launch other value-added services by August this year. These are expected to address the growing market for specialised services.

Meanwhile, the court's verdict on MTNL's foray into the cellular phone segment unleashed a buying frenzy at the MTNLcounter. The spurt in price was aided by a jump in volumes. On the Bombay Stock Exchange, the scrip rallied to a close of Rs 213.7 against its previous close of Rs 197.90 -- a gain of Rs 15 or close to 8 per cent. The appreciation in price was stifled by the volatility margins imposed by Sebi.

The rise in price was accompanied by a substantial jump in volumes. More than 7 lakh shares exchanged hands against Wednesday's volume of 1.97 lakh shares. On the Delhi Stock Exchange, the scrip opened at Rs 197.55, saw the day's low at Rs 197.35, touched a high of Rs 212.25 before closing at the same price. The uptrend in the scrip is expected to continue since MTNL is expected to rake in a decent sum by cellular phone services through its well-entrenched network in Delhi and Mumbai.