5G spectrum auction: Bid amount exceeds Rs 1.45 lakh crore on Day 1; 5th round to start
New Delhi, July 27: The fifth round of bidding for India's largest-ever spectrum auction is set to take place on Wednesday for the second day after the first-day bids "exceeded all expectations and surpassed 2015 records" for the 5G spectrum auction.
On the first day of the much-awaited auction of the 5G telecom spectrum, the Department of Telecom got bids totalling Rs 1.45 lakh crore, according to Union Communications Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw.
Auction sales are expected to exceed Rs 80,000 to Rs 90,000 crore, according to industry estimates. Four rounds of the auction on Day 1 of the 5G spectrum were completed on bidding on Tuesday which saw telecom operators -Reliance Jio, Adani group, Bharti Airtel, and Vodafone Idea bid for the 5G spectrum.
In all probability, the auction process is expected to be concluded on Wednesday and the high-speed telecom services are likely to be offered in several cities in the county by the end of the year.
"We have to complete this process by August 14 and 5G services in the country will start by September-October," Information Technology Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said after the bidding on Tuesday.
"Going by the initial responses, it seems all the previous revenue records would be broken during this auction process," Vaishnaw added.
"Approximately Rs 1.45 lakh crore is an important number. This shows that the entire industry is now moving towards a positive territory in terms of new investments, quality of services, new technology," he said.
The telecom industry is heading towards becoming a sunrise sector, the minister said.
The auction is conducted for spectrum in various low (600 megahertz, 700 MHz, 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz, 2300 MHz), mid (3300 MHz) and high (26 GHz) frequency bands.
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Recently, the Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi approved the Department of Telecommunications (DoT)'s 5G spectrum auction through which spectrum will be assigned to bidders to provide 5G services to the public as well as enterprises.
India is likely to get full-fledged 5G services by March 2023, Vaishnaw had said earlier.
"Telecom is the primary source of digital consumption and it is very important to bring trusted solutions in telecom. India has its own stack of 4G like radio, equipment, and handset. 4G is ready to deploy in the field and 5G is ready in the lab, and 5G will be ready to deploy in March 2023."
"The technology, core network behind 5G services should be built up by India, that would be an achievement for the country," Vaishnaw stated.
The speed abilities of 5G services would be roughly ten times higher than those offered by present 4G services.
The Adani group, led by Gautam Adani, just entered the telecom industry. This was their first time competing in the 5G telecom spectrum auction. The group has stated that it would not, however, enter the consumer mobility sector.
Adani Group is taking part in the 5G auction to offer private network solutions as well as improved cyber security at airports, ports and logistics, power generation, transmission, distribution, and various manufacturing operations.
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-PTC News
