According to a latest update, cell phone users in the country may have to pay more for their call charges. As per a latest report, telecom tariffs in India will rise by 37 to 49 paise per minute, ahead of the cabinet's decision to fix the reserve price for the 2G spectrum auction at Rs 14,000 crore per 5 MHz in the 1,800 MHz band. 

Presently, tariffs in India are the lowest in the world. 

It is reportedly said that the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), which is also examining legal procedures of the case against the government, will finalize its steps by this week end. 

According to A Raja, India’s Telecom Minister, the base price approved by Cabinet was 22 percent lower than Rs 18,000 crore minimum rate suggested by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai). To the reader’s surprise, the base price is 7 times higher than the price new companies had paid back in 2008 to get spectrum. 

Rajan Mathews, Director General at COAI has stated that the industry body, which includes the GSM tele-companies including Bharti Airtel, Vodafone, Idea and Aircel, among others, are examining all the legal options to challenge the policy decisions of the government. 

He further added, they would be able to take a decision by the end of this week. 

Besides increasing terriffs, COAI also stated that the latest decision would lead to a rise in the industry debt to anywhere between Rs 3.7 lakh crore and Rs 5.4 lakh crore.