Bharti, Vodafone to use extended spectrum

New Delhi: The Department of Telecom (DoT) allowed telecom firms Bharti Airtel and Vodafone to use extended spectrum to avoid large scale disruptions to their networks.

The department allowed an extension until mid-January for the Delhi circle, Vodafone can use its airwaves till mid-December in Mumbai. The highest decision-making body at DoT, Telecom Commission will now ratify the decision.

In a note to the Telecom Commission, DoT has said it has "no other alternative but to agree to the operators' request for a 45-day extension in Delhi and 15 days in Mumbai”.

The companies are seeking extra time to migrate to new frequencies that were allotted by the telecom department as late as October, leaving them just over a month to complete the changeover.

"To avoid large-scale disruptions to networks which may cause inconvenience to millions of subscribers and in public interest," the joint proposals by the operators "may be considered", the DoT said.