DoT doles out 8 MHz spectrum to MTNL

As private mobile telephony operators wait to hear from the department of telecommunications (DoT) on their nine-month-old applications for spectrum, the radio frequency that enables wireless communication, Mahanagar Telephone Nigam (MTNL) has received 4 MHz each for the two cities it operates in "" Mumbai and Delhi.

MTNL, a listed company in which the majority equity is held by the government, already has 8 MHz each in the two cities, the country's most lucrative markets, with which it services a total of 2.77 million mobile subscribers.

Earlier, the DoT had given 10 MHz to Bharat Sanchar Nigam, the unlisted company owned by the government that operates in all of India, except Mumbai and Delhi. The move had not pleased the private operators, which said it violated the government's avowed principle of providing a level playing field to all.

There is no universally accepted method of calculating the number of subscribers every MHz can accommodate, but the benchmark in Indian conditions is accepted as 3 million, against 8 million for each MHz in China.

Spectrum is a much sought-after commodity as it not only allows more connections, but also more efficiency in providing value-added services.

Efforts have been on to persuade the armed forces to give up a part of the considerable spectrum they hold.

According to sources, who did not want to be identified, the spectrum for Mumbai was allocated in August and for Delhi last month.

When contacted, a DoT official, who did not want to be identified confirmed the development. The spectrum was allocated from the 1800 MHz band, which, upon an assessment by the Wireless Planning and Coordination cell, was found to be not in use by the defence forces.

The official, however, added that the spectrum was allocated on a trial basis for electromagnetic compatibility testing.

When contacted, the top executive of a private operator refused to buy the "trial" explanation and alleged that the allocation was permanent.