DCC to auction spectrum in April valued at Rs 5.23 lakh crore

New Delhi: The Digital Communication Commission (DCC), the highest policy-making body of the Telecom Ministry on Friday approved the spectrum auctions to be held in March/April while making no change in the reserve pricing of the radiowaves decided by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI).

The auction will see 5G spectrum sale for the first time.

The bids for spectrum auctioneer who will conduct the auction will be opened on January 13, Anshu Prakash, Secretary, Department of Telecommunications (DoT) told media here post the meeting, adding that there will be a total 8,300 MHz spectrum to be put in auction amounting to Rs 5.23 lakh crore (of base price).

One of the important changes in the upcoming auction is that the government will charge upfront payment of 10 percent for the sub-gigahertz instead of 25 percent earlier, and for the gigahertz and above frequencies it will be 20 percent instead of 50 percent earlier. The rest of the amount can be paid in 16 installments over the next 20 years after a moratorium of two years.

The available spectrum will be allocated in the next 30 days of the upfront payment to the operators, Prakash said.

He said that out of the 8,300 MHz spectrum put on the auctions, 6,050 MHz would be available for 5G.

The auction will include the sale of over 8300 MHz of spectrum spread over all 22 telecom circles. TRAI had initially given recommendations for spectrum valued at Rs 4.9 lakh crore. But the telecom department has also included an additional spectrum for the auction which will be free from the expiration of licenses of Reliance Communications, Bharti Airtel in 8 circles and Vodafone e and Idea Cellular in 4 circles each, the Secretary added. (IANS)

Also Read:Lower base prices being mulled for spectrum Auction: DoT

Also Watch: AATASU staged protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act. 2019 in Golaghat