At the heart of the dispute is the 700 MHz band, coveted for its ability to provide wide and reliable coverage. The home ministry’s Directorate of Police Wireless Coordination (DCPW) is looking for spectrum for police and disaster response use, while the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) says the band is already reserved and cannot be allocated at this stage, according to two officials in the know.
This comes as India seeks to modernize its public protection and disaster relief (PPDR) communications networks with expanded broadband capabilities. Modernization of the communications network used by public safety agencies such as police departments, firefighters, medical professionals, and paramilitary forces is needed because the existing infrastructure is largely fragmented, narrow-band, or based on aging analog systems primarily limited to voice communications.
These legacy networks often operate in silos and lack interoperability, preventing different public safety agencies—such as police, fire, and medical teams—from seamlessly coordinating or sharing critical information during a crisis.
Modern emergency response now requires broadband capabilities to support real-time video analytics, high-quality imagery, mapping and location services, as well as advanced tools such as drones, artificial intelligence (AI), and the Internet of Things (IoT) that current systems cannot handle.
The Home Office believes the 700MHz 5G spectrum is key to public safety networks due to its mature ecosystem of devices, lower deployment costs and the band’s ability to travel longer distances and penetrate buildings with its signals better than high-frequency bands.
“There is no spectrum left in the 700 MHz band. MHA or DCPW must approach telecom service providers for priority service or they can plan to upgrade Public Protection and Disaster Relief (PPDR) in the 800 MHz band,” said one of the government officials cited above.
In the recently released National Frequency Allocation Plan (NFAP 2025), the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has allocated portions of the 800 MHz band for broadband PPDR. The same is in addition to the previously allocated spectrum in the 400 MHz band. The NFAP is the official master document for radio frequency management in India.
“There have been multiple communications in the 700 MHz band between DoT and DCPW for the PPDR project. The MHA authority needs 10 MHz spectrum. In an internal committee report, it said that part of the spectrum should be better utilized for PPDR and should not go to rail at the expense of national security,” the second official said.
Email queries to the Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Transport and Ministry of Railways did not elicit any response till press time.
Sure, the spectrum value of 10 MHz is worth it ₹40,000 crore based on the auction price of 5G spectrum from 2022. In 2024, the Union Cabinet approved allocation of additional 5 MHz to Railways for Kavach technology. An additional 5 MHz of spectrum, previously provisionally allocated in the 700 MHz band, has also been approved for the National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC) for the train control system for the Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) corridor.
“Discussions have taken place (between the DOt and the Ministry of Home Affairs) to explore sharing of spectrum in the 700 MHz band between the railways and for PPDR,” said the second official cited above.
The 700 MHz band has already been allocated to various Ministries/Departments/Agencies of the Government. These include: 10 MHz for the Ministry of Defence, 10 MHz for the Indian Railways, 5 MHz for the National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC) and 10 MHz for BSNL. In the 2022 auctions, Reliance Jio acquired spectrum worth 10 MHz ₹40,000 million crowns.
With a full spectrum of 45 MHz, it is worth it ₹1.7 trillion in the 700 MHz band is already allocated, the same has not been offered for sale in the upcoming auctions.
“The 2015 World Radiocommunication Conference recommended both the 700 MHz and 800 MHz bands for broadband public protection and disaster relief networks. There is no fundamental difference between the two bands. But the challenge in 800 MHz would be to free up the band from existing users, which will take time,” said Bharat Bhatia, president of the ITU-APT Foundation in India, which works with industry and government on telecom policy.
According to Bhatia, frequency allocation is not a challenge, but implementing the PPDR project will be a huge task for the government as it involves coordination between telecom operators, state police, various public security agencies, etc.
Building public safety and disaster response networks is a time-consuming task. It took the U.S. about 10 years to develop FirstNet, which is its broadband network for first responders and mission-critical applications, Bhatia said.
Globally, 700 MHz and 800 MHz are emerging as the most widespread bands for public safety networks. For example, in the US, FirstNet, a nationwide public safety broadband network, operates at 700 MHz. The US developed a network with AT&T. South Korea has also developed a network in the 700 MHz band with two operators. European countries such as France, Germany and Switzerland have also set aside 700 MHz for PPDR broadband networks, while Australia primarily uses 800 MHz for similar purposes, but is also considering the 700 MHz band. In Asia, South Korea and Thailand have allocated parts of the 700 MHz and 800 MHz bands to support LTE-based public safety communications.
Analysts say the country’s public safety project will also be a big profit opportunity telecommunications operators. In the July and September earnings calls, Reliance Jio said it was working with government agencies to protect the public and recover from the disaster.
“Similarly, other operators have shown interest in PPDR. The government is also hiring project managers and technical consultants to specifically help with proof-of-concept trials in 10 states,” said the second official, adding that three consultants — EY, Telecommunication Consultants India Ltd (TCIL) and ITI Ltd — were shortlisted in May last year.
India’s PPDR project is progressing at a slow pace. It was in 2018 that the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) has recommended setting up of an all-India Integrated Broadband PPDR (BB-PPDR) network based on modern 4G/5G technology to replace the aging narrowband and analog systems.
The regulator also called for a nationwide allocation of dedicated, free spectrum in the 800 MHz band to ensure the network meets strict public safety requirements.
