'Spectrum auction likely by January 2020'

The government is likely to complete the next telecom spectrum auction by January 2020, sources said.

The Digital Communications Commission (DCC) in its meeting on Thursday, however, has further delayed the finalisation of the spectrum prices and discussion would take place in the next meeting.

The Telecom Department has devised a form which has to be filled in by interested parties, based on which government will take a call on 5G trials, official sources said.

The DCC also decided that Arunachal Pradesh will be provided with 4G connectivity.

About 1,917 mobile towers would provide connectivity to 2,215 villages in Arunachal Pradesh and 763 villages in Assam at a cost of Rs 2,536 crore. The commission also approved 4G connectivity in 2,691 villages in Meghalaya approved at a cost of Rs 2,132 crore.

Further, to decrease the problem of call drops, the commission decided that for existing housing complexes, the Telecom Department would request the Housing Ministry to come up with fair, transparent and unbiased measures for providing access to telecom operators in private residences.

It was decided that no owners or Resident Welfare Associations (RWA) should enter into any kind of arrangement or exclusive contract with any service provider.IANS