According to Kapil Sibal, Minister for Communications and IT, the empowered group of ministers (EGoM), headed by P. Chidambaram, Minister of Finance has resolved the issues related to the proposal of levying a one-time licence fee on existing operators, say news reports.
Based on the EGoM’s recommendations, the final proposal on the issue has been sent to the government. The cabinet will take a final decision on the issue.
Before taking a final decision, the EGoM also consulted the Attorney General of India, who said that only existing GSM operators should pay the auction determined fee for spectrum held beyond 6.2 MHz.
Moreover, the Attorney General of India opposed the Department of Telecommunications’ proposal to ask all the operators to match the price determined in the upcoming auction for the spectrum they currently hold. Instead, he suggested that only existing GSM operators like Bharti Airtel, Idea Cellular and Vodafone India pay the auction-determined fee for the additional spectrum and the fee should be charged retrospectively from July 2008.
