The government expects to garner about Rs 5,000 crore (Rs 50 billion) from the existing mobile operators such as Airtel, Vodafone and Idea by imposing a one-time fee on those who are holding spectrum beyond the threshold limit of 6.2 Mhz, a move which will raise the cost of radio frequency.

"The Telecom Commission will announce within a couple of weeks the one-time spectrum fee for existing operators. I am told informally that it will be in the range of Rs 4,000-5,000 crore (Rs 40-50 billion). It will be based on Rs 1,658 crore (Rs 16.58 billion), which is the all-India licence fee," Telecom Minister A Raja said.

He said this is over and above the annual charges. Even in course of time, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India will give recommendation to enhance the annual charges. The date to be taken into consideration is from the day of allotment, which is to be decided by the Telecom Commission.

It will also depend on the amount of spectrum held beyond 6.2 Mhz and the circle. Raja, however, did not disclose the per Mhz charge, saying the Commission would work on it.

At present Bharti, Idea, Vodafone Essar, Aircel, and BPL are holding over 6.2 Mhz in many circles. They get spectrum as per subscriber-linked allocation.