The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) is likely to seek an approval from the Union Cabinet for its proposed agreement with the Ministry of Defence for swapping spectrum. As per the agreement, DoT will swap its spectrum holdings in the 1900 MHz band with the frequency airwaves in the 2100 MHz band currently held by the defence forces.

The deal will enable provisioning of additional 3G spectrum for telecom operators. In return, the swapped spectrum (1900 MHz band) will become part of the Defence Band, being implemented exclusively for the defence forces. DoT will also constitute a high-level monitoring committee to oversee the swap.

Earlier in November 2014, the Ministry of Defence had given an in-principal approval to vacate 5 MHz of spectrum in the 2100 MHz band for commercial use in 17 circles. With spectrum being available in the 2100 MHz spectrum band, DoT is likely to sell it along with the frequency airwaves in the 800 MHz, 900 MHz and 1800 MHz bands. The next round of spectrum auctions is scheduled to be held in February 2015, which will enable the government to earn at least Rs 93.55 billion.