Govt asks DoT to assess Swachch Bharat cess on spectrum charges
11 Jan 2015 5:09 AM IST
The Cabinet is believed to have asked the Department of Telecom to examine imposing a Swachch Bharat cess on spectrum charges paid annually by service providers.
Besides this, it has also asked DoT to submit a proposal to notify dedicated spectrum for Defence forces as 'Defence Band (DB) and Defence Interest Zone (DIZ)' by January 15.
Defence has agreed to release more 3G spectrum as demanded by telecom operators once DB and DIZ are notified.
Industry has been demanding the government to auction 20 Mhz of 3G spectrum in February but Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad has only assured auctioning 5 Mhz as dedicated spectrum bands for Defence forces are yet to be notified.
"Cabinet on January 5 had asked DoT to examine imposition of a cess on Spectrum Usage Charge (SUC) for Swachch Bharat Kosh and bring a proposal for its consideration by January 15.
Besides this, it has also asked DoT to submit a proposal to notify dedicated spectrum for Defence forces as 'Defence Band (DB) and Defence Interest Zone (DIZ)' by January 15.
Defence has agreed to release more 3G spectrum as demanded by telecom operators once DB and DIZ are notified.
Industry has been demanding the government to auction 20 Mhz of 3G spectrum in February but Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad has only assured auctioning 5 Mhz as dedicated spectrum bands for Defence forces are yet to be notified.
"Cabinet on January 5 had asked DoT to examine imposition of a cess on Spectrum Usage Charge (SUC) for Swachch Bharat Kosh and bring a proposal for its consideration by January 15.
Next Story
