The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has finalised an agreement with the Ministry of Defence (MoD) for vacating more 3G spectrum. This will provide an additional 15 MHz frequency for telecom operators. A memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the same is expected to be signed between the Ministry and DoT soon. DoT has prepared a note for approval by the Cabinet, sources close to development said.

Once signed, this would be a boon for the 3G spectrum-starved private operators, as most of them have entered into intra-circle roaming due to scarcity of radio waves. Additional spectrum would result in an increase in quality of 3G services and enable operators such as Bharti Airtel to become pan-India 3G players.

The exchequer would also gain from auctioning the new airwaves to the private operators for commercial use.

In return, the DoT has agreed to create Defence Band (DB) exclusively for the armed forces. The DoT will also constitute a high-level monitoring committee to oversee the swap.

This is good news for telecom operators as the Department of Telecom has indicated that it wants to auction 3G spectrum along with other frequency bands in the sale scheduled for February. Earlier, the DoT was planning to conduct spectrum auctions in two phases, between February and May next year. But telecom operators wanted the auction for all spectrum bands to happen together.

Telecom companies as well as the regulator are of the view that the auction should take place only when adequate spectrum is made available, and the bidding should be held simultaneously for both the services — 2G and 3G. The next round of spectrum auction is proposed to be held in February and the government is estimated to garner at least ₹9,355 crore from sale of radio waves.

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