India to form 3G auction panel to this week

NEW DELHI, INDIA: A panel of ministers to consider key issues relating to a delayed global auction of third-generation wireless spectrum is likely to be formed this week, India's telecom minister said on Tuesday.

The panel will finalize a base price for the auction after ministries differed, and agree on the number of slots firms can bid for in the 20 of India's 22 service areas where they are up for grabs.

Minister A. Raja said he was still hopeful the spectrum sale would be concluded by the end of the fiscal year in March.

When announcing the auction of third- (3G) and fourth-generation radio waves, Raja's ministry set a base price of 20.20 billion rupees ($408 million) for pan-India 3G spectrum.

The finance ministry later suggested doubling that.

In Monday's budget, the finance ministry said it expected revenues of 200 billion rupees ($4 billion) from the auction in the 2009/10 fiscal year, around half of earlier estimates.

BSNL to start 3G services by Feb end

Meanwhile, the Telecom Minister also said that the state-run telecommunications company Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) will start 3G telecoms services by end-February.

BSNL is India's second-largest telecoms firm after Bharti Airtel in total subscriber base, but in the fast-growing mobile telephony segment it is ranked fourth.