New Delhi: Even as the Telecom Commission prepares to approve a Rs9,970-crore proposal for laying an alternative communication network for the defence forces to resolve issues related to 3G spectrum, another dispute is simmering over broadband wireless access (BWA) spectrum.
The dispute, between the department of telecommunications (DoT) and the department of space (DoS), is threatening to delay an auction of BWA spectrum that the government had estimated would raise around Rs12,000 crore this fiscal.
Network tussle: BWA spectrum is needed to roll out Wimax services to increase broadband penetration, especially in far-flung areas. Rajkumar / Mint
BWA spectrum is necessary for rolling out Wimax services to significantly increase broadband penetration, especially in far-flung areas where cables cannot reach.
Wimax, short for Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access, is a telecommunications technology similar to Wi-Fi, or wireless fidelity, a standard that helps hand-held devices and laptops to access the Internet. Wimax is much faster and offers longer range.
The issue between DoT and DoS is that the latter insists Wimax operations will interfere with sensitive satellite communications in adjacent spectrum bands, according to officials in the two government departments and industry executives interviewed by Mint.
In May, the defence forces agreed to vacate 42.5Mhz of spectrum, the carrier of voice signals between wireless devices such as cellphones. Because of the mobile nature of military operations, the defence forces are the biggest users of spectrum in a country that has become the fastest growing cellphone market, adding at least 10 million new mobile subscribers a month and exponentially raising spectrum demand.
The defence forces will be given an alternative optical fibre cable network for their communication needs. The network is being built by state-owned telecom firms Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd on behalf of DoT. The army’s network will cost Rs1,077.16 crore and that for the air force and navy combined will cost Rs8,893 crore.
The resolution of spectrum coexistence issues between DoS and DoT is proving to be tougher.
Officials from the two departments, along with other stakeholders, have met at least twice in the Bangalore headquarters of the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) to discuss the issue and find ways to settle it.
DoS officials suggested the DoT put a guard, or buffer, band of 5Mhz on either side of the BWA spectrum to ensure that there is no interference from BWA operations on satellite communications.
“This cannot be done as Wimax operators need a minimum of 20MHz (2x10MHz as per Wimax forum standards) to operate and by putting the guard band on each side, only 10MHz of the 20MHz slot that is being auctioned would become usable,” said a senior DoT official, who didn’t want to be identified because he is not authorized to speak to the media.