Jan 14 set as date for 3G auction

India will begin a long-delayed auction of third-generation (3G) radio spectrum on January 14,2010,the telecom ministry said on Saturday.

Firms have to submit bids by December 21 for a total of 71 blocks of spectrum put up for auction across 20 of Indias 22 telecom zones,according to a memorandum to prospective bidders. The auction was originally slated for January 2009 but was deferred to December after differences over the reserve price for the bids.