The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) also rejected the DoT’s view that those airwaves be charged at an auction determined price (ADP). It said that since the railways requires spectrum for the purpose of enhancing safety and security, there is no justification for levying spectrum charges based on ADP. The regulator said the Indian Railways and mass rapid transit systems (MRTS), such as the National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC), play a pivotal role in delivering a wide range of financial, economic and social benefits to the nation. The services being offered by these entities are of national importance and are integral to public interest, it said, adding, “The spectrum charging should ensure that financial burdens, such as high spectrum charges, do not undermine this vital objective.” The DoT had contended that since the Indian Railways had not deployed the network, it had not shared the base station details to arrive at the spectrum charges payable as per the formula-based charging. “Hence, so far, they have not paid any spectrum charges for the already assigned 5 MHz spectrum in the 700 MHz band,” the DoT told Trai in a June 19 letter.
In view of the situation, the DoT said, additional spectrum should be given only when the existing airwaves are being utilised and the assignment be done on an ADP.
In 2022, Reliance Jio had bought 10 MHz spectrum in 700 MHz band for ₹39,270 crore. Jio was the only private telecom operator to have 700 MHz spectrum.
Trai, however, highlighted that auction-determined prices of spectrum used for access services are linked to a wide range of offerings, including internet, data, voice calls, SMS and other related services.
“However, Indian Railways and NCRTC require spectrum in the 700 MHz band for enhancing safety and security. Since both entities require spectrum only for captive use and not for providing any commercial services, using the market-determined prices of access spectrum bands for determining spectrum charges for IR and NCRTC may not be appropriate,” the regulator added.
