Prasad to meet Parrikar on issue of 2100 Mhz spectrum

Govt has decided to auction 5 MHz in 2100MHz band in the upcoming auction on February 25

Minister for IT and Communications Ravi Shankar Prasad will meet Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar on Wednesday to resolve issues related to 2100 MHz spectrum and notification of Defence band.
 

Government has decided to auction 5 MHz in 2100MHz band in the upcoming auction on February 25. While another 15 MHz to be vacated by Defence forces through swapping arrangement is yet to be made available. 

The telecom and defence ministries have, in principle, agreed to a swapping arrangement for release of 15 MHz of 2,100-MHz spectrum by defence services in exchange for a similar amount of 1,900-MHz airwaves. But the government is keen on auctioning only five MHz in the coming round as talks for vacation of spectrum are still on and actual swapping might take some time. 
 

The department of telecommunications (DoT) also need to notify -- Defence Band and Defence Interest Zone.  Prasad has earlier said that he expects the dedicated spectrum band for the defence sector to be notified in February.
 

The Telecom Commission on Monday finalised a base price of Rs 3,705 crore per megahertz for 2100 MHz band, which is 36 per cent higher than what telecom regulator Trai's recommended price at Rs 2,720 crore per Mhz.