The dispute over vacation of spectrum by armed forces seems to be taking a new turn with Communications Ministry demanding Rs 5,000 crore from Defence Ministry for occupying radio waves, which it claims to own.
Communications Minister A Raja will next week meet External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee and Defence Minister A K Antony to substantiate the claim over spectrum ownership. Raja would cite the Indian Telegraph Act, 1885, which states that communications ministry is the sole owner or custodian of spectrum, DoT sources said.
The meeting assumes importance as a Group of Ministers, headed by Mukherjee, looking into the ways and means to vacate unutilised spectrum from defence forces and other occupants for mobile telephony use is likely to meet this month.
According to the sources, Raja will tell his two cabinet colleagues to resolve the issue of ownership and release 60 Mhz of unutilised spectrum before the GoM meets. Raja’s claim is likely to be contested by defence ministry, they added.
The sources said DoT would have to negotiate for release of spectrum as defence forces have over a period of time gained a stronghold over radio waves for security purposes.
DoT has estimated that about 60Mhz of spectrum is lying unutilised with the defence services and asked them to vacate at least radio waves under the Air Force (42.5 MHz), for which the alternate network will be ready in two months as per the defence ministry’s demand.
