Go ahead with auction of BWA spectrum: PMO

The Prime Ministers Office (PMO) has asked the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) to examine the possibility of going ahead with the auction of spectrum for broadband wireless access (BWA) within this financial year pending a resolution of spectrum auctions for 3G or third generation mobile services.

3G and BWA spectrum auctions were due this month and would have fetched the government Rs 30,000 crore in revenues. Auctioning BWA spectrum would be one way for Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee to gain some revenue for the current fiscal in which tax collections have been squeezed by the economic slowdown and stimulus-led tax breaks.

DoT has earmarked two slots of BWA spectrum of 10 MHz each in the 2.3GHz band for auctioning. The base price for the licence is Rs 1,750 crore, half that of a 3G licence, so the auction would fetch the government a minimum of Rs 3,500 crore.

“We have received a letter from the PMO to look into the possibility of delinking BWA auction from 3G. We are considering this option,” a senior ministry official confirmed to Business Standard.