The Supreme Court has allowed the government to conclude the auction of spectrum and collect initial payments from operators.
Earlier, in March 2015, the Supreme Court had allowed the government to proceed with the auction, which began on March 4, 2015 on the condition that no final spectrum allocations could be made until after the court held hearings regarding legal issues raised by various operators and industry stakeholders.
The government has received bids worth Rs 1,098.74 billion from the auction of spectrum in four bands after a 19-day auction which concluded on March 25, 2015. Following the Supreme Court?s orders, the government can now collect intitial payments from successful bidders, which is expected to be over Rs 280 billion to help close its fiscal deficit.
The final allocation of spectrum however, will be subject to the court’s verdict as the auction criteria and guidelines have been challenged by few of the players.
