Spectrum sale, rail projects of ₹12,300 crore get Cabinet nod

The Union cabinet on Thursday approved auction of 10,523 MHz of telecom spectrum in multiple bands, including 5G, and aims to mop up ₹96,317.65 crore, minister for information and broadcasting Anurag Thakur said.

- Gulveen Aulakh, Puja Das & Somrita Ghosh

Since the spectrum sale in 2022, more than 130 mn subscribers are using 5G services, making India the world's 2nd-largest 5G ecosystem

Auctions will take place in the 800, 900, 1800, 2100, 2300, 2500, 3300 MHz and 26 GHz bands, and the telecom department will use indexation on previous auction price to determine auction price for the sale, which he said will take place in the coming months.

“Additional spectrum will improve the quality of telecom services and coverage for the consumers," the government said in a statement, following the cabinet meeting. According to the statement, spectrum held by certain companies undergoing insolvency is expiring in 2024 on completion of the term, and that will also be put on the block.

Mint reported last month that the government was expecting at the most ₹10,000 crore from the upcoming spectrum auctions, since telcos would focus primarily on renewing licences that are set to expire between February and August this year. The pricier 600 Mhz and 700 Mhz bands have not been made part of the sale this time.