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Government to award 4th cellular licences by end August

The government said in a statement on Wednesday that it was likely to award the fourth cellular operator licences to successful bidders by the end of August.

India's mobile market is made up of 21 circles or zones that include the four large cities and 17 circles categorised as A, B and C circles based on subscriber potential.

These circles have two operators each while the state-run telecom giants Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd are the third operators.

India's department of telecom flagged off the bidding for the fourth cellular license in March.

The successful bidders would be able to offer services to subscribers a year later, the statement said.

The process of bidding for the cellular license involves a pre-qualification round followed by three rounds of financial bidding, the statement said.

These licenses are to be granted on a non-exclusive basis for a period of 20 years, which can be further extended by 10 years.

The successful bidder will have to pay the entry fee upfront, the statement added.

The bidders have to be companies registered in India and must not have more than 49 per cent in foreign equity.

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