The Ministry of Finance has raised doubts over the licencing policy being adopted by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) for the upcoming 2G spectrum auction, says news reports.
The Ministry of Finance’s reservations are centered on unresolved issues related to the proposed unified licensing regime. Earlier, DoT planned to implement a unified licensing regime at the pan India, circle and district levels. However, DoT rejected this approach due to complexities arising out of the migration of existing long-distance telephone operators and tower companies.
Now, DoT proposes to bring in a limited unified licence which will be implemented at the circle level. The Department of Economic Affairs (DEA) is of the view that asking bidders to move to the new regime could discourage new players from participating in the 2G spectrum auction, resulting in a negative impact on the government’s efforts of maximising revenue realisation.
DEA has suggested that operators winning spectrum in the 2G auction be given the UASL licence for the time being and later be allowed to migrate to the proposed new licensing regime.
