(Telecompaper) Indian telecom regulator TRAI has issued its recommendations for the auction of spectrum in the 2,100 MHz band. The Department of Telecom asked the regulator to speed up its opinion on the frequencies, so they can be auctioned in February alongside the planned sale of 800, 900 and 1,800 MHz band rights. Trai recommended reserve prices for the 3G band ranging from INR 80 million per MHz in the Northeast region, where a discount was recommended in order to encourage higher penetration, to INR 4.46 billion per MHz in the most populous part of the country, Delhi. The regulator recommended that operators that already hold spectrum in the 2,100 MHz band remain subject to the roll-out requirements from the auction in 2010, while new operators in the band face a reduced time of three years, rather than five years, to meet the initial coverage requirement. In addition, in bands with more than two blocks of 2x5 MHz available in the upcoming auction, no operator should be allowed to acquire more than two blocks in a region. Trai noted as well that the 15 MHz nationwide in the 1,800 MHz band to be released by the Ministry of Defence and the frequencies returned by STel after it halted services should also be included in the auction. The prices proposed by Trai are higher than the reserve prices set in the auction in 2010 but lower than the actual bids received then.