DoT Forms Committee to Review and Revise NFAP 2022

Reported by Tanay Singh Thakur March 18th, 2024 at 12:23 pm

The Chairman of the Committee will decide the chairman of the working groups as well. Taking into account whatever decisions were taken during the World Radiocommunication Conference 2023, the committee will review/revise the NFAP 2022.

Highlights

The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has formed a committee to review and revise the National Frequency Allocation Plan (NFAP) - 2022.
The NFAP is a central document that outlines who can be given spectrum and how the companies across different sectors can use it.
The new committee has been formed with the approval of competent authority under the chairmanship of Wireless Adviser to the government of India.

dot forms committee to review and revise

The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has formed a committee to review and revise the National Frequency Allocation Plan (NFAP) - 2022. The NFAP is a central document that outlines who can be given spectrum and how the companies across different sectors can use it. The new committee has been formed with the approval of competent authority under the chairmanship of Wireless Adviser to the government of India.

There are three working groups under the committee:

Working Group 1 - for frequency bands up to 1 GHz (inclusive),

Working Group 2 - for frequency bands 1 GHz to 6 GHz

Working Group 3 - for frequency bands beyond 6 GHz.

The Chairman of the Committee will decide the chairman of the working groups as well. Taking into account whatever decisions were taken during the World Radiocommunication Conference 2023, the committee will review/revise the NFAP 2022. Further, the committee will also see the national demand and the latest developments concerning spectrum requirements by different industries to update the NFAP.

The committee will also consider the proposals sent by the industry stakeholders while reviewing and revising NFAP 2022.

Next Spectrum Auction in India

The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has said that the next spectrum auction in India will take place on May 20, 2024. The telcos will be offered spectrum in the following bands: 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz, 2300 MHz, 2500 MHz, 3500 MHz, and 26 GHz. This time there's no 700 MHz band included and it is likely because there's no telco interested in it anymore.

This time, Indian telcos are expected to show light participation and bid for airwaves only in circles where their existing spectrum is expiring soon. Vodafone Idea (Vi) has even surrendered some spectrum back to the DoT which was expiring soon. The telco has made a strategic decision to reduce costs and still be able to provide optimal services to their customers.

You can read about the spectrum auction details through the links below: