5G spectrum auction: Govt sees bids of Rs 1.45 lakh crore on Day 1 after four rounds

At the end of Day 1 of India's first auction of the 5G spectrum, that powers ultra-high data speeds, Information and Technology Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has stated that four rounds of the auctions have been completed and the Government has received bids of around Rs 1,45,000 crore.

As per sources, the most demand was seen for 26GHz band spectrum on the first day of the auction.

The expected revenue of Rs 1.45 lakh crore, received on Day 1, is around 1.5 times higher than the government's pre-auction predictions of Rs 80,000 crore to Rs 1 lakh crore.

The IT Minister, while speaking to the media, stated that the spectrum auction should end by July 27 and the spectrum allocation would be complete by August 14. Vaishnaw also added that the 5G service in the country is set to commence by September-October this year. 

Main players of the 5G auction

Billionaire Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Jio, Sunil Mittal-led Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Idea and a unit of billionaire Gautam Adani's flagship Adani Enterprises are in the race to bid for 5G spectrum, that offers speeds about 10 times faster than 4G, lag-free connectivity, and can enable billions of connected devices to share data in real-time.

Image: Shutterstock, ANI