The refarming of 687 megahertz spectrum brings the total available spectrum for Indian carriers to 1,587 megahertz
The Government of India has approved the refarming of 687 megahertz of spectrum from various ministries for the deployment of 5G and future 6G services, local press reported, citing the country’s communications minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, as saying.
The frequencies are being refarmed from the Ministry of Defense, the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) and the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.
According to the reports, these frequencies will now be brought for auctions.
“By 2030, the telecom sector’s total spectrum demand is projected to reach 2,000 megahertz. Currently, we have 900 megahertz, leaving a gap of 1,100 megahertz,” Scindia told reporters.
The refarming of 687 megahertz spectrum brings the total available spectrum to 1,587 megahertz, Scindia said, adding that the remaining 413 megahertz required to meet the 2030 demand would also be made available within the stipulated timeline.
Out of the 687 megahertz spectrum approved by the government, 328 megahertz of spectrum will be released immediately, according to the report.
Indian carriers have been recently asking for more spectrum from the government to improve 4G and 5G services, and also for 6G services.
Scindia added that a committee of secretaries is working on identifying more spectrum to refarm soon.
“A report will come by the middle of this year [on further spectrum refarming], and we would take that step to ensure that there are no bottlenecks for our telecom landscape to grow in India,” Scindia added.
SP Kochhar, director general of Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) welcomed the government’s decision to refarm this spectrum.
“It is extremely heartening to know that concrete steps have been taken and are being taken to firstly, recognize our demand of 2,000 megahertz for the IMT band, and actually taking strategic steps to allocate part of it to IMT immediately and continue this exercise so that 2,000 megahertz can be achieved.”
Last month, India’s Department of Telecommunications (DoT) said it was planning to refarm over 1,100 megahertz of spectrum currently allocated to various ministries to support the rollout of advanced 5G and future 6G services.
The DoT stated that the initiative will involve reallocating airwaves in 10 frequency bands, including the mid-band spectrum (1-6 GHz) and parts of the 6 GHz band.
The DoT said it has identified a number of spectrum bands that will be available for refarming over the next few years, which will then be auctioned to local carriers. These bands, currently held by ministries such as space, defense, broadcasting, railways and housing, include portions of the mid-band, according to previous reports. A significant portion of the current spectrum is used by legacy systems, such as those in the armed forces and the space department, which will be relocated to alternative frequencies to free up space.
