The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has adjusted the application submission timeline for the upcoming spectrum auctions, which were delayed due to the Lok Sabha elections. According to a notification from the DoT, the deadline for submitting bid applications has been extended by 15 days to May 6.
Initially scheduled to commence on May 20, the upcoming airwave sale was postponed to June 6 following the announcement of election results. Mock auctions, originally planned for May 13 and 14, will now take place on June 3. The final list of bidders is set to be released on May 9, according to the latest notification.
In February, the Union Cabinet, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved auctions in eight spectrum bands for mobile phone services, with a base price of Rs 96,317.65 crore. The Ministry of Communication announced auctions for spectrum in the 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz, 2300 MHz, 2500 MHz, 3300 MHz, and 26 GHz frequency bands, all with a validity period of 20 years.
During the meeting, the Cabinet also established a Committee of Secretaries (CoS) to examine the re-farming of existing spectrum usage, aiming to increase spectrum availability to meet future telecommunications service needs.
