TRAI to make recommendations for spectrum reserve price: Sibal

A high powered ministerial panel today decided to refer the issue of spectrum reserve price for the forthcoming auction to telecom regulator TRAI and asked it to give recommendations within 60 days.

'It was decided that on the issue of reserve price the matter should be referred to TRAI and we would request the Trai to give its recommendations before the end of 60 days because the government is very keen to move forward and sell the spectrum,' Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal told reporters here.

Sibal added that after receiving the recommendations, the Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) will meet to fix the reserve price so that spectrum in all bands can be sold.

'...As and when the Trai makes a recommendation, the EGoM will meet and fix the reserve price and move forward so that all spectrum in all bands should be sold,' Sibal added.

The Department of Telecom (DoT) is required to conduct third round of spectrum auction in 20 out of 22 service areas to comply with the Supreme Court order of February 15, 2013.

The DoT is learnt to have planned to auction all the spectrum- 800 Mhz (CDMA), 900 Mhz (GSM) and 1800 Mhz (2G GSM), in the third round that were put up for auction in March 2013 but remained unsold.

The court order has asked government to auction entire spectrum that was freed from 122 2G licences that were canceled by the apex court on February 2, 2012.