New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) has raised the issue of a possibility of another scam which might be taking place in the telecom sector. Senior BJP leader Yashwant Sinha in a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has raised questions on the new reserve price of spectrum as recommended by TRAI.
The letter alleges that the proposed steep reduction in the spectrum reserve could favour few operators.
"I am appalled and dismayed at the proposed steep reduction in the spectrum reserve and reserve price and Spectrum Usage Charges which will favour few operators at the cost of national exchequer," Sinha has written.
As per the TRAI recommendations, the reserve price for 1 MHz of spectrum of Pan-India basis in 1800 MHz band has been reduced from Rs 2,376 Crore to Rs 1,496 crore or by 37 per cent. In case of key circles like Mumbai and Delhi this reduction is much steeper by more than 50 per cent.
Sinha added that the price reduction could lead to a loss of approximately Rs 27,000 crore to the national exchequer. "Even with Telecom Commissions recommendations that has proposed marginal 25 per cent increase in Metro and Category A circles for 1800 band reserve price and Metro circles for 900 MHZ band, this potential loss still amounts to Rs. 27,000 Crore," he said.
Sinha in his letter urged the Prime Minister to take 'immediate remedial measures' to uphold the interest of the citizens. 'In order to realize the true economic value of spectrum and to uphold the interest of Indian citizens and the revenue objectives of the Government, the recommendations of TRAl with respect to reserve price and SUC should be rejected forthwith," Sinha asserted.
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