The Indian government expects to reap about Rs400bn (US$7.98bn) from mobile radio spectrum auctions during the year to March 2013, according to India’s annual budget presented in parliament today.
The US$7.98bn may come from three different …
The Indian government expects to reap about Rs400bn (US$7.98bn) from mobile radio spectrum auctions during the year to March 2013, according to India’s annual budget presented in parliament today.
The US$7.98bn may come from three different auctions.
In February, the government announced that a new 2G auction would take place after the Supreme Court ordered the cancellation of 122 licences illegally granted in 2008. Initially planned for May, the process is now not expected to take place until 2013.
Recently, the government also agreed to give up control of spectrum in the 700MHz band and allocate it for the provision of 4G telecoms services, according to media reports.
It has also been suggested that the government would re-auction BWA spectrum that was returned by state-owned operator Bharat Sanchar Nigam (BSNL) in December last year.
In 2010, India raised approximately US$22bn from the auctions of 3G and 4G licences.
