Indian Government plans to hold spectrum auctions for the Fourth Generation (4G) mobile services by the end of this year, Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal said at the India Day function organised by his Ministry at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.
He also said that the government will have enough radio waves for all operators after it is released from the defence services and by cancellation of 122 2G licences by the Supreme Court in the 2G spectrum allocation case.
The government does not want to finish the auction all the spectrum at one go but the final decision will depend on Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI). The government will also auction 2G spectrum which will be vacated by the cancellation of licences following Supreme Court order.
3G auctions happened in India in April 2010 and the winners were announced in May 2010. There is no exact time frame when the 4G auctions would take place, but more details such as pricing, participants would be available within the next few months. He said he will announce National Telecom Policy 2011 in April which will present the roadmap for the telecom sector over next 10-15 years.
Source: Indian Express