The most contentious policy, yet to be finalized, is the one on licensing new entrants and allotting additional spectrum . The government has received applications from 47 companies for over 500 circle specific licences Having decided that there will be no auction of spectrum (unlike the case of 3 G services), the government finds itself tied in knots as it tries to reconcile existing policy, the TRAI recommendations, with the demands of the GSM players, the CDMA players and the prospective new entrants . A battle royal is ensuing between the rival lobbies. All the political parties have jumped into the fray and letters are being shot off to the Prime Minister. The GSM players are feeling the heat and have been accused of hoarding spectrum.

The government was compelled to set up a committee headed by the additional secretary in DOT on spectrum allocation norms, after cellular operators opposed recommendations of Telecom Engineering Centre recommending an increase in subscriber base criteria for allocation of additional spectrum.  The committee has held a series of meetings where both the CDMA and GMS associations and individual companies made presentations to it. But, just as it is to finalise its recommendations ,  the combative COAI has walked out of the committee on the grounds that the committee has either completely ignored its submissions or has cherry picked our inputs and applied its own assumptions to arrive at incorrect conclusions without affording us any opportunity to refute them . The COAI also claimed that none of the committee members had any practical experience of running mobile networks and had only theoretical knowledge.

It will be interesting to see how the UPA government reconciles the interests of all the players on this contentious issue.