Communications minister A Raja has asked for a change in the terms of reference of the group of ministers(GoM) on spectrum, which has been set up under the chairmanship of Pranab Mukherjee, to resolve the issue on who has the ownership over spectrum in the government.Raja is also open to the suggestion of the finance ministry to include "pricing of spectrum" in the ambit of the GoM.Citing the 1885 Indian Telegraph Act, Raja has claimed that the Department of Telecom (DoT) is the owner and licensor of spectrum in the country, and licensees like the defence forces and others will have to pay for using it.Raja will meet defence minister A K Antony and external affairs minister Pranab Mukherjee next week for making changes in the terms of reference.The GoM has been set up to look into the ways and means to vacate the unutilised spectrum from defence forces and other occupants for using it to enhance the capacity of mobile telephony in the country. The GoM will meet this month to take up the matter.Speaking to reporters at a function, Raja said that he has an open mind on the issue of pricing of spectrum. "I am open to discuss the spectrum pricing issue. If the Ministry of Finance wants it to be discussed, we will discuss," he said.
