- The Finance Minister has announced that the
5G spectrum auction will be completed in 2022. - Commercial rollout of 5G will begin in 2022-23.
- The government has also announced a production-linked incentive scheme for 5G.
Sitharaman further added that the commercial rollout of
$4 could be one of the beneficiaries of this announcement since it makes optical fibre cables.
Making the announcement, Sitharaman specifically mentioned private players, which suggests that the state-run telco, BSNL, is still a ways away from getting access to the next-gen telecom technology.
“The required spectrum auctions will be conducted in 2022 to facilitate roll out of 5G mobile services within 2022-23 by private telecom operators,” Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said.
In addition to this, Sitharaman also added that a production-linked incentive scheme will also be announced to push 5G technology in the country. It will be focused on design-led manufacturing.
The finance minister also announced that 5% of the Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF) would be allocated for research and development (R&D) along with commercialisation of technology aimed at improving the proliferation of broadband to the rural areas of the country. USOF is collected from telcos, who pay 5% of their adjusted gross revenue to the government towards this.
“All villages should have the same access to communication facilities as urban areas,” Sitharaman added.
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