Not given free hand on 2G auction, says Sibal
15 Nov 2012
On the back foot after the dismal outcome of the 2G spectrum auction that ended yesterday, telecom minister Kapil Sibal today told newspersons, ''The nature of the market was different in 2008, it was different in 2010 and is different in 2012.''
In 2008, former telecom minister A Raja had given out 122 licences. In 2010, 3G spectrum along with BWA had been auctioned and fetched the government over Rs1 lakh crore.
''As long as the government is given a free hand in the larger national interest to move forward - the government would love to move forward, but sometimes it so happens that we are not given a free hand and therefore we land ourselves in this situation,'' Sibal added.
Against eight blocks, except the top-up blocks, the government received Rs8,977 crore. The bid on top-up blocks amounts to Rs430 crore, Sibal said.
He further said the auction would have easily garnered Rs1 lakh crore worth of bids if the government was given a free hand in policy making.
"We are not here to score points - our point always was that market dynamics should be allowed to play out. The moment you start dealing with the market directly or indirectly then it will be bad. The government's wisdom should only intervene when required. The purpose of the government is to ensure development and to ensure prosperity. We are not here to feel vindicated," he told reporters in a rather cryptic and convoluted explanation.
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