No fuss, no follow up: Sunil Mittal praises govt on spectrum allocation

Says this is a first in his over 30 years of first-hand experience with Department of Telecommunications

Telecom companies were issued allocation letters within hours after paying the first installment for 5G spectrum, prompting Bharti Enterprises Chairman Sunil Bharti Mittal to praise the government for the ease of doing business.

“No fuss, no follow up, no running around the corridors and no tall claims. This is ease of doing business at work in its full glory. In my over 30 years of first-hand experience with the DoT (Department of Telecommunications), this is a first! Business as it should be,” Mittal said in a statement on Thursday.

Telecom minister Ashwini Vaishnaw also asked the service providers to get ready for 5G roll out. “Spectrum assignment letter issued. Requesting the telecom service providers to prepare for 5G launch,” the minister tweeted.

Telecom companies paid over Rs 17, 873 crore towards 5G spectrum dues. Nearly half of the amount (Rs 8,312.4 crore) was paid by Bharti Airtel, which made advance payments for four years to free up cash for future investments.

Mittal said Airtel was provided the allocation letter for the designated frequency bands within hours of payment. E band allocation was given along with spectrum as promised.

“Leadership at work—right at the top and at the helm of telecom. What a change! Change that can transform this nation – power its dreams to be a developed nation,” Mittal said in his statement.

Airtel, which plans to roll out commercial 5G service later this month, acquired 19,867 MHz of spectrum in various bands worth Rs 43,084 crore in the recent auction of 5G spectrum. This includes spectrum in 3.5 GHz, 26 GHz, and certain low and mid-bands.