Fresh DoT guidelines for screening licence applications

The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has decided to set up a committee to lay down guidelines for scrutiny of companies seeking unified assess service licence (UASL). The guidelines are expected to be ready in the next ten days.

Speaking on the sidelines of a Press conference organised by Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd for the launch of low-cost personal computers, Communications Minister A Raja said, "I have asked the DoT to form a panel to frame guidelines for granting licences to new applicants. The guidelines will come out within ten days," The DoT has fixed October 1 as the deadline for applying for UASL licence.

Raja said new norms were needed considering the large number of applicants. About 140 applications are pending for UASL, which enables companies to provide services across the country.

Apart from construction companies like Delhi developers Unitech Ltd and Parsvnath Developers, both of which have applied for UASL licence, Ruia-controlled BPL Ltd, Mahendra Nahata-owned HFCL, Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani group-backed Swan, Cheetah Telecom and S-Tel are among the companies that have applied for UASL licence.

Also, a bevy of telecom companies that have already got the licence are waiting for fresh spectrum to expand. These include Aircel, Spice Telecom and Idea Cellular.

According to a PTI report, Raja said, "All applications will be scrutinised and limited applications selected." DoT sources said the panel would also look into the shareholding of the applicants to see if the existing companies were seeking licences through them.

With around 25 MHz spectrum expected to be available for 2G operators, there is a race among the companies to get UASL, which guarantees a fixed amount of spectrum. Many analysts say there is a need to separate serious players from fly-by-night operators, who have entered the fray to make quick money by trading in spectrum.

There is also a debate among existing operators whether 2G spectrum should be auctioned or given on the basis of the number of subscribers.