India allocates 3G spectrum

The Indian government is allocating 3G spectrum to Bharti Airtel, Reliance Communications, Vodafone and others on 1 September, as the defence forces have agreed to hand over the required airwaves, reports PTI. This will pave the way for the launch of high-speed mobile broadband services in India. A senior official from the Department of Telecommunication (DoT) said the deck has been cleared and the department will hand over the spectrum to the operators. DoT had set 1 September as the deadline for allocating spectrum, as per the schedule of the 3G auction. As many as seven operators, including Bharti Airtel, Vodafone, Tata Teleservices, Reliance Communications and others had bagged 3G spectrum in select circles. Operators are confident if the spectrum is handed over to them by September, they can roll out services by the end of this year or early 2011.