Govt identifies spectrum for defence

The government on Wednesday identified spectrum for exclusive use of defence forces and commercial use besides approving the swapping of spectrum.

 

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi identified 49 bands of spectrum between 3 megahertz and 40 gigahertz of which nine will be exclusively reserved for defence while 31 will be shared among telecom firms, space, broadcasters and civil aviation.

The government also approved swapping of airwaves between the players such as defence and telecom. The swapping was approved in the 15 Mhz of 3G spectrum.

“This is an indication of the manner in which the new government takes decision,” Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad told reporters after the meeting. The Cabinet, however, did not take any decision on 3G spectrum pricing or any other issue related to upcoming auction, a long pending demand of the industry.

The Cabinet also approved harmonisation of the band in 1700 to 2000 MHz. This will be done in a period of one year.

The Telecom Ministry has proposed to exchange 15 Mhz spectrum it holds in 1900 Mhz band with same quantum of airwaves held by the defence forces in 2100 Mhz. The 2100 Mhz band is currently used for 3G services.

 “Swapping of 15 MHz in the frequency band of 1900 MHz with Telecom has been permitted to be done today. Now the swapping will happen but it will take some time,” Prasad said.