Final decision on 2G spectrum pricing within 3 months

Last month,telecom regulator Trai had recommended over six-fold increase in the spectrum price to Rs 10,972.45 crore for a pan-India license with 6.2 Mhz spectrum as compared to Rs 1,658 crore now.

In fact the regulator had classified valuation of spectrum in two categories. There are different prices for spectrum up to contracted limit of 6.2 Mhz and for additional airwaves.

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) had also recommended ‘one-time’ entry fee for additional spectrum beyond 6.2 Mhz. The spectrum price varies from circle to circle in both categories.

Replying to a question on the cancellation of license of Swan Telecom (now Etisalat DB),Chandrasekhar said,”No decision on cancellation of licenses of Swan has been taken so far,any decision will be taken by end of April only.”

The government had sent a show-cause notice to Etisalat DB asking it to explain why its licences in Delhi and Mumbai circles should not be cancelled for missing roll-out obligations.

The telecom department had also issued a notice to Aditya Birla company Idea Cellular for cancellation of 2G licence in Punjab.

The notice to Etisalat DB came after the department had collected over Rs 300 crore in penalties from most new operators for not starting services within the stipulated time after getting the licences and spectrum.