New Delhi: The Centre on Tuesday will start the auction of spectrum supporting 5G services in India.
About 72,000 MHz under nine bands will be up for sale with a validity period of 20 years in the biggest auction of airwaves supporting 5G, paving the way for 10 times faster telecom services.
The Union Cabinet approved the auction on June 15 and allowed non-telecom service providers to bid for 5G spectrum.
India’s largest telecom operator Reliance-owned Jio, Sunil Bharti Mittal’s Airtel, Vodafone-Idea and Adani Data Networks are participating in the auction.
The four firms together have submitted ₹21,400 core in Earnest Money Deposit (EMD). Jio has submitted ₹14,000 crore, Bharti Airtel ₹5,500 crore, Adani Data Networks ₹100 crore and Vodafone-Idea ₹2,200 crore.
Adani Data’s entry surprised many but the company has refuted reports of any clash with Jio. It has said it wants to set up a private network to help digitise its businesses from airports to energy to data centres.
