Government is on the cusp of commencing the e-auction for phase III FM radio that will allow 839 radio channels to come up in 227 cities.
"We are trying to put in processes which can make the whole ascending e-auction process as transparent and hassle free as possible. And I think by the next month we would in a position to be able to unroll the entire e-auction process," Information and Broadcasting Minister Manish Tewari said while speaking at the CII Big Picture Summit.
"We are on the cusp of commencing the auction for phase III FM radio," he said, adding there is "no hurdle" for conducting the auctions.
The cabinet had given its nod for FM Phase III expansion in 2011 but subsequently certain concerns had been articulated by the industry which had been discussed elaborately and TRAI recommendations had been sought.
Tewari, however, said he could not give a specific timeline for the auctions but said the process was on course.
The Minister also said that there is a need to improve cinema infrastructure and sought the industry's suggestions on this aspect.
The number of cinema-going people could increase manifold if there were more cinema screens, he said.
"On this particular aspect, we would welcome any inputs which the industry may have as to how government can work not only with the industry but also state governments to see that we can put in a place a proper package of incentives which can lead to creation of infrastructure, which then the content industry could leverage to attain growth objectives," he said.
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