DCC clears Rs 5.22 lakh cr spectrum sale plan; auction in March-April

New Delhi: India’s largest ever airwaves auction, which could fetch the government over Rs 5 lakh crore as telcos bid for 8,300 MHz of 4G and 5G spectrum, is set to take place in March-April 2020 after the Digital Communications Commission (DCC) gave its approval for the spectrum sale on Friday.

Telcos and analysts said the starting price of both frequencies (Rs 492 crore per unit for 5G and Rs 6,568 crore per unit for the 700 MHz band — used for 4G) was too high to attract serious bidding, especially given the financial condition of operators. Loss-making Vodafone Idea and Bharti Airtel are battling a serious financial crisis, facing statutory dues of over Rs 53,000 crore and Rs 35,500 crore, respectively, which need to be paid by in just over a month.