5G spectrum auction :
On the sixth day of the 5G spectrum auction. it was reported that the bidder and the amount witnessed an incremental increase in the bidding figure after 37 rounds. It was further reported that the government will now receive bids worth Rs 1,50,130 crore.
Led by Reliance Jio with over Rs 80,100 crore and Bharati Airtel with around Rs 50,000 crore worth of bids, the 5G spectrum auction will continue on Monday.
While Vodafone Idea has placed bids for about Rs 15,000 crore, a unit of Adani Enterprises has placed bids for around Rs 5,000 crore.
Airtel and Jio are currently engaged in intense bidding in the UP East circle for the 1800MHz band.
Earlier, addressing the 'Telecom Investors Roundtable' in Mumbai, Vaishnaw had said that there is no upfront payment and the winning telecom companies can pay the money over a period of 20 years.
In all, 72 GHz (gigahertz) of radiowaves worth at least Rs 4.3 lakh crore are on the block.
More than 71% of the total 5G spectrum on the block has been provisionally sold.
IT Minister Vaishnaw expects a 5G rollout by October this year.
In 2015, the telecom spectrum auction fetched Rs 1.10 lakh crore for the government.
5G, which can provide data speeds about 10 times faster than 4G, would enable better e-health, connected vehicles, AR/metaverse and mobile gaming/streaming.
The ongoing 5G spectrum auction indicated that the country's telecom industry has come a long way in 5G advancements, said Vaishnaw.
The industry has emerged to become a sunrise industry in India and a benchmark for the world, the minister added.
Inputs from IANS
