New Delhi: The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has initiated a public consultation process to determine the reserve prices for auctioning FM radio channels in 18 new cities across Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and Jammu & Kashmir. These cities will be categorized under a new classification, ‘Category E’.
The move comes after a request from the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) to expand private FM radio services in these regions. The MIB has proposed technical parameters similar to ‘Category D’ cities for the new category, with the exception of Effective Radiated Power (ERP), which will be set between 750 Watts and 1 Kilowatt for ‘Category E’ cities.
Additionally, TRAI has been tasked with recommending reserve prices for the cities of Bilaspur (Chhattisgarh), Rourkela (Odisha), and Rudrapur (Uttarakhand).
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To gather diverse perspectives on this matter, TRAI has invited written comments and suggestions from stakeholders by August 29, 2024. Counter comments can be submitted until September 12, 2024.
The consultation paper aims to establish fair and competitive reserve prices for FM radio channels in the designated areas, contributing to the growth of the broadcasting sector in India.
