5G spectrum allocation to be done by August 10: Ashwini Vaishnaw

New Delhi [India], August 1 : The government has garnered bids worth Rs Rs 1,50,173 crore in the 5G spectrum auction that concluded on Monday and the allocation to the successful bidders would be done by August 10, Union Minister of Communications, Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw told ANI.
Vaishnaw said that the first instalment of Rs 13,365 crore will be paid to the government within 10 days.
"Auction has been completed and in the next few days, till August 10, all formalities including approving and allocating the spectrum will be done," he said.
"It seems we would be able to launch 5G in the country by October. The ongoing 5G spectrum auction indicates that the country's telecom industry has come a long way in 5G advancements, the minister said.
Vaishnaw said that better availability of spectrum will improve the quality of telecom services in the country.
Spectrum purchases by mobile operators are good enough for covering 5G to the entire country, he added.
India's biggest ever auction of airwaves ended on Monday, with spectrum worth Rs 1,50,173 crore being sold.
Reliance Jio Infocomm Limited has made bids worth Rs 88,078 crore accounting for 58.65 per cent of the total value of Rs 1,50,173 crore received by the government in the 5G spectrum auction.
Jio has made bids to acquire 24,740 MHz spectrum in 700 MHz, 800 MHz, 1800 MHz, 3300 MHz and 26 GHz.
Bharti Airtel has made bids worth Rs 43,084 crore to acquire 19867.8 MHz spectrum in 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100MHz, 3300 MHz and 26 GHz frequency bands.
Vodafone Idea Limited has made bids worth Rs 18,799 crore to acquire 6,228 MHz spectrum in 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz, 2500 MHz, 3300 MHz and 26 GHz.
Four firms are in the fray for the 5G auction. Adani Data Networks Limited has made bids worth Rs 212 crore to acquire 400 MHz spectrum in 26 GHz frequency band.
A total of 72,098 MHz of spectrum was offered for auction, and out of that 51,236 MHz has been sold, the minister said.