According to an internal note being circulated in the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), GSM operators will have to give up excess airwaves they have when their mobile permits come up for renewal in early 2014, according to news reports.
This implies companies such as Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Essar and Idea Cellular, among others, which currently have up to 10 MHz or units of 2G airwaves in many regions, will be given only 6.2 units of radio frequencies when they renew their permits. Besides, telecom companies will also have to pay market rates for this 6.2 MHz of airwaves in every region when they renew their licences.
This has already been communicated to all operators. At present, operators hold separate permits for each of the 22 circles in the country and these are valid for a period of 20 years. About 11 mobile phone companies will have to renew their permits between 2014 and 2021.
